Fairfarren
by Loyal Subject
Summary: She now had everything, everything she could ever imagine and more. It was a new chapter in her life. And yet, Alice Kingsley could not help but to feel as though something was still missing. AlicexHatter. Story recently moved due to new available section
1. Pilot Chapter

_Well, I certainly was never expecting this idea to come along. For those of you who don't know, I have been obsessed with Alice in Wonderland for nearly two years, ever since I heard about the Tim Burton version. I have already written a fanfiction based on the novel (Curiouser and Curiouser With You), one based on WCMI/Disney animated movie (Dehatterfying the Mad Hatter), and now, this. Honestly, I originally wanted this to be a one-shot. But, as you can see, this story can easily be expanded into a multi-chapter story. I have not decided what I am doing with this. I may even add more to this chapter. But for now, this is as it stands. _

_The reason for why this story will probably be multi-chapter is for two reasons: 1. the ending to Tim Burton's Alice SUCKED. Plain and simple. Or rather, it was terrible for us Hatter x Alice fans. Really? You'd think the same woman who gave us the glorious Beauty and the Beast would at least give us Hatter x Alice. But I'm not blaming anyone as I don't know who's idea it was to scrap that pairing (in case you didn't know, they originally kissed TWICE in the rough draft version of the script...yeah). Anyway, 2. there was little to no expansion on the interesting ideas the screenwriter came up with. I have read the visual guide and there is a ton of stuff they left out. Or rather, a ton of stuff they ignored or only mentioned briefly. My main goal is to expand those ideas so we get the full scope of Underland we should have gotten in the movie. _

_As I said, I have no idea where this is going yet. I need to do some more research. But this is the first chapter anyway. Please let me know what you think so I know whether or not to continue the story. I've got other personal projects to work on as opposed to this...so you know feedback is a necessity in this case. Reviews are obviously encouraged with this story, and also constructive criticism. Seriously, if something is screwed up, tell me now so I can fix it before I mess up the story even more while it's barely begun. Enjoy ~  
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**Fairfarren**

She now had everything, everything she could ever imagine and more. It was a new chapter in her life; a new adventure that awaited her in China. And yet, Alice Kingsley could not help but to feel as though something was still missing.

_Wonder _had set sail on its journey to China just a day ago. Having never traveled at sea before, Alice could not help but to feel a sense of nausea as the ship made its merry away across the ocean towards a new destination. She had been sick just a half hour or so after parting ways with her mother, sister, and Lord Ascot. That was nearly a day ago. Convinced that she must receive some fresh air in order to calm her nerves, Alice curiously walked along the deck of _Wonder. _

"_Wonder. _How ironic," she mused to herself, for had it not been for that unusual dream she had endured after accidentally falling down a rabbit hole (which was a silly event altogether), Alice would have never dreamed of proposing such an ambitious idea to Lord Ascot in the first place: let her late father's company be the first to trade with China. What a strange dream it had been; yet what a necessary dream it was. While it was not very proper for a woman to be in charge of such affairs such as embarking on a journey to China in favor of a trading company, Alice was confident she would prove herself in the end. After all, it was much better than marrying a dull, arrogant man such as Hamish for the sake of money.

Alice could not help but to frown at the very idea of Hamish. The image in her mind alone sent unpleasant feelings throughout her entire body. And to think she might have actually said yes to him! Again, it was all thanks to that wonderful dream. Yet, Alice was unable to recollect all of it. She distinctly remembered two boys who were exactly like the Chattaways, a dodo with a cane (though he was not in the dream for very long), a cat that always grinned, a rabbit wearing a waistcoat, a dormouse, a blue caterpillar named Absolem, a positively mad hare, and two queens who were fighting for the throne. Despite all the details she could conjure up, there always appeared to be one piece of the puzzle missing. Even as Alice continued to run through everything that had occurred during her dream, something-or rather, _someone_-was not present. It was as though she were talking to thin air in her memories.

"I'll miss you when I wake up," Alice recalled herself saying on a white balcony in the dead of night. But whenever the image played in her mind, there was no one next to her. Perhaps she had been talking to no one in her dream. It was a dream after all and therefore did not have to make much sense. Still, Alice was unsettled by this deduction.

The boat jerked suddenly causing Alice to be brought back to reality. As she focused on the sailors moving about the ship, she became distracted once more as some porpoises swam along the boat. Alice became entranced by the creatures, having never seen them before. She wondered what sort of other animals she may be able to spot while she was at sea: a shark perhaps or maybe a turtle if she was lucky. Though Alice was afraid the only way to see a turtle would be if it were caught rather than in its natural habitat: the only way to accomplish such a task would be to live under the sea _with _the turtle. And what sort of creatures would she see in China? Would it not be wonderful if some of the creatures she had seen in ancient drawings such as dragons were real? Or perhaps chimeras or some other fantastical creature?

"I believe that's six impossible things," Alice told herself, pleased at her ability to conjure up what others would deem as nonsense. Thinking of such things had caused her to no longer feel that uncomfortable nauseas feeling. At least, she was no longer pondering the nauseas feeling. Yet, Alice did not believe she was ready to eat breakfast just yet. In fact, it was still sickening just to think about food. Still, she knew there would be food waiting for her in her room. She had to at least tell whoever was bringing her food that she did not want it otherwise if the ship took a sudden turn, would the tea not spill all over? Alice was not very knowledgeable with how ships were run and therefore had no idea if her logic was correct or not.

Alice traveled back towards the location of her room. It took her a little bit longer than expected as she was still not accustomed to the layout of the ship and consequently lost her way a few times. When she did open the door to her room-at least, what she _thought _was her room-Alice did not recognize it at all. Normally, she would have shut the door to the strange room and continued along her way to find the correct destination. However, for some odd reason, she felt compelled to linger within the cabin a bit longer (cabin being the proper term). She was not fascinated by the bed or the eloquent trunk that lay against the wall. No, what caught her immediate attention was a looking glass directly across from her.

There was nothing particularly special about this looking glass. Yet it completely and utterly compelled Alice from the moment she laid eyes on it. As if in a trance, she walked slowly towards it. She quickly turned around to make sure that no one saw her enter the cabin before closing the door. Only after she was sure she was safe did she become engulfed in her trance again as she stepped directly in front of the looking glass. Alice stared at her reflection: her blue jacket and fair, wavy hair that fell beside her.

A strange thought crept upon Alice as she stared at the looking glass. What would the world on the other side of the mirror look like? She imagined it would be completely backwards: everything would be topsy-turvy as it was the _opposite _of what was on her side of the glass. What would her other self be like, she wondered. If she were to pass through the looking glass, would her other self disappear since there could only be one her on one side of the mirror at a time?

"Come Alice, that is enough pretending for one day," she scolded herself though her scolding was entirely playful and not meant to be taken seriously. In fact, a smile was present upon her face as she stared at her image in the mirror.

Even though she was pretending, Alice could not help but to feel compelled that she should reach forward and see if she really could pass into the world beyond the looking glass. Before Alice had any conscious knowledge of it, she was already stretching her hand towards the mirror. Her hand slowly touched the glass. To her surprise, as she lightly pushed against the glass, her hand fell _through _the looking glass. Curious, Alice pushed her arm further along, allowing the looking glass to completely swallow it up. As curiosity got the best of her, Alice found her entire body passing through the strange mirror and entering a world she had only thought was present in her dreams.

Once her face had managed to make its way through the looking glass, Alice came across a world unlike any she had ever seen. Or rather, she _had _seen it, only a few times in her life. But she never believed it to be real. It couldn't possibly be real...

But it was. Underland was as real as ever.


	2. Underland

_Okay, so after the first day I posted Faifarren (or however you spell it =O), I was expecting maybe 3 emails from botfanfiction. I open it up and there's around 40. 40 EMAILS!?!?! Wow, really you guys, it means a lot. And that's precisely why I decided to turn my brain on full blast to come up with an actual plot. I've got a decent portion of it. So, here is chapter two! These chapters will probably be on the short side in the beginning until I've got a better idea as to how I'm connecting all my ideas. I also didn't want to introduce our Hatter until another chapter...cause I'm evil like that =p._

_I also got a TON of reviews saying something like "OMG Hatter and Alice kiss twice? WHERE!?". The answer to this question is here: 1. Go to . 2. Go to the forums. 3. go to the Alice in Wonderland section of the forums. 4. there is a link to the script (the site is kind of weird and has pop-ups and stuff so I don't want to post a direct link) in the thread that is entitled "Futterwacken?" or something of that nature. So yeah, if you want to read it (or get a map of Underland like I had to do) that is where you'll find it. _

_Anyway, reviews are encouraged! And constructive criticism as well. Though if you're going to criticize, my spell-checker says some words exist while editing this document through says those words do not exist. So yeah...I blame spell checker =p. Enjoy!!!!!  
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Underland **

Alice mesmerizingly gazed around her surroundings of Underland. Strangely, she found the sky to be brighter than she had remembered as though a dark cloud had been lifted upon the sky. The once moss-covered fountain and gate were cleared of such vegetation sending an overall pleasant feeling. Even the flowers seemed a bit brighter than she had recalled them to be. However, there were still large hedges of giraffes, dragons, and other animals scattered about the area.

The large proportions of the flowers confused Alice. Was she her normal height or had the looking glass shrunk her? She did not feel as though she had been shrunk. But if she were her normal height, why were the flowers so large?

"But this surely can't be real so it does not matter what height I am," Alice told herself as her eyes continued to engulf her surroundings. Her head turned to see that the looking glass was resting in a seemingly random location: in the middle of the garden she was now in. How odd to have a looking glass in a garden.

A dragonfly and rocking-horsefly flew past furiously, causing Alice to jump a bit at the sight of them. How large they were! Why, they were nearly the size of Alice herself. Upon realizing this, Alice backed away from where they were in case they were carnivorous flies.

"I wish Dinah were here," Alice found herself thinking. Strange that she should be thinking of Dinah now, of all times. Yet, it felt appropriate to do so. She wondered how Dinah would react to such a situation if she were alive now. Certainly, she may want to fetch after the flies, her paw dangling in the air in an attempt to grasp them. Of course, this would be if she was much larger than the flies as opposed to small like Alice was at present.

"Well look who decided to drop by," one of the flowers--a red rose to be exact--stated blatantly, forcing Alice to no longer be lost in thought.

"Excuse me?" Alice remarked, slightly offended by the rude behavior the flower was currently practicing. Yet, for some reason, Alice felt as though she should have been expecting rude behavior from the flower.

"I dare say her world has uglified her. Just look at that jacket! She should have stayed here if you ask me," a yellow flower chimed in, completely ignoring Alice's comment. The red rose nodded in agreement as she scrutinized little Alice from head to toe, again acting as though Alice could not hear her.

"Uglify?" Alice repeated, her head cocking to the side as she attempted to make sense of the language they were currently utilizing. "What do you mean by that?"

"It means 'to make something uglier' you stupid girl," the yellow flower replied, his tone demonstrating a certain irritation: he did not even bother to look in her direction while speaking. Alice did not know what to say to this and chose to remain silent. The flowers occasionally glanced down upon her, expecting her to speak. When she did not, it was clear they became annoyed yet again.

"Well?" the red rose insisted, coaxing Alice to at least say something.

"I had nothing to say," Alice replied. "Though, I am a little confused at the moment. I remember dreaming of this place..." her voice trailed off as she started to stare at Underland's beauty once more, "...but I was certain it was nothing but a dream. And now I'm here and I don't know what I ought to do."

"Hmph, hear that? She's forgotten already. Such a simpleton," a pink flower stated, now entering the conversation.

"Please, if you could just tell me which way I ought to go," Alice pleaded, having enough of the flowers' ridiculous conversation about her.

"Well if you don't remember being here then it really doesn't matter which way you go now does it?" the pink flower answered.

"But there must be someone who can help me get back home," Alice replied.

"Of course there is. But you asked something completely different. If you want to find someone who can help you just head towards Snud," the red rose answered impatiently.

"Snud?" Alice inquired.

"Snud. That way," the yellow flower interjected, motioning towards the direction of 'Snud' with his head. "Goodbye." Alice stood there, dumbfounded by the sudden abruption of the conversation. He merely gave directions and now it was goodbye? What a funny place she was in.

"...Goodbye...." Alice replied, still uncertain of the status of the conversation. She slowly began to walk where the flower had indicated, still staring at the three.

When Alice was a good distance away from the rude flowers, she faced forward in search of someone who could help her. But, at the moment she really was not concerned with seeking help. At least, that was not her top priority.

"How is this real?" she could not help but to think to herself. It was still a shock to Alice that she was in Underland: the mysterious place from her dreams. A part of her wanted to believe she may be dreaming even now. She pinched herself to see if she could possibly wake up. Nothing.

"Oh, but that didn't work last time either," Alice said to herself as she attempted to bring forth the hidden memories. The recollection of her dream was like a murky puddle: she could recall certain aspects but had little idea which order the events took place. Alice would not be surprised if some of the events in her dream were missing altogether. But this one instance she remembered clearly: pinching did not work in the dream. If pinching herself did not work, how could she possibly tell if she was dreaming or not? "I certainly hope this is a dream," Alice added as it was beginning to grow dark, "Wouldn't want to run into a bandersnatch again."

Meanwhile, miles away from where Alice was currently traveling, beyond Witzend, in a desert lay a heavily guarded black fortress. White chessmen remained on full alert as the biggest threats to Underland were in their care: the Red Queen and her Knave of Hearts. Iracebeth of Crims sat sulking in an uncomfortable chair as far away from her Knave, Ilosovic Stayne, as she could. Though there were only a few feet separating the two as a chain forced them to be within a considerable range with one another, it was better than nothing.

Stayne did not seem to mind the separation either as he preferred to stand on the opposite side of the poorly lit room. He stood tall and proud in order to enforce the physical prowess he had over his once beloved queen: sending a clear message that he could very well strangle her if so chose to thereby causing her enormous head to explode.

Iracebeth knew this all too well which was why she sat silently as close to the door as possible. The sneaky, devilish scoundrel! Here, she had thought someone actually loved her, cared for her when no one else appeared to. But of course, this was nothing but a lie: a dirty, rotten lie. If she could, his head would be off within seconds. Just the thought of it all caused her face to turn a fiery red. She had to calm herself though, not wanting Stayne to witness her vulnerability. Luckily, Stayne took no notice in Iracebeth for he had far more important things on his mind at the moment.

One of the white chessmen entered the room, a certain hint of caution present on his face. He warily held a tray full of scrumptious tarts. Another chessman entered quickly behind him, a sword close to his side in case any of the prisoners should try to escape. Stayne eyed this particular sword keenly as though it were his new queen.

Before anyone could notice the unusual look present in Stayne's eyes, Ilosovic Stayne kicked the tray of tarts, sending them flying into the air. While the chessman was caught off guard, Stayne utilized the metal encompassing his hands to knock the guard unconscious. By this time the other chessman had drawn his sword but Stayne was prepared for this as he dodged the incoming attack. Doing so sent Iracebeth nearly flying off her seat, forcing her forward.

"Stayne what are you doing?" she screamed in agitation, enraged by his actions as he was completely foiling her reputation of good behavior; acting as if "good behavior" would cause her original sentence to be lifted. But Stayne was much too busy at the moment to bother with her tantrum. The chessman took another strike only this time Stayne made sure the sword swung on his chains, breaking them. With free hands, Stayne punched the guard directly in the face. Once the opportunity arose, the Knave with the heart-shaped body took the guard's sword and swung at the chains encompassing his feet. Now free, Stayne darted towards the door, ready to take down any guard that stood in his way.

"Stayne! Stayne!" Iracebeth continued to scream as she saw Stayne's escape and his reluctance to free her, forcing her to remain cuffed at the wrists. Without the physical prowess her Knave possessed, Iracebeth of Crims was forced to remain in the room until more guards arrived to restrain her. But this was no matter as she now possessed something vital: a bargaining chip.

By the time Alice managed to escape the forest, it was early morning. The sky possessed a tint of pink, the clouds created a hazy look. Alice did not pay much attention to the sky though as she walked towards what appeared to be a house of some sort. What an odd sort of house it was: the building itself was in the shape of a hare's head with broken windmills hanging along the sides. The windows and door appeared to give the home a face. It took her a few minutes before she was able to deduce that this was Thackery's home only it was thatched with new patches of fur that were a lighter brown instead of the previous dark brown.

However, Alice did not have much time to admire the new editions of Thackery's home for an unfamiliar voice joyously exclaimed, "Alice! You're back already!"

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_Well, since part of the reason why I began this story was because of stuff I didn't like about the movie, I thought I'd point out the reasons why the movie bugged me. 1. HOW COULD YOU NOT MENTION DINAH AT ALL!!!! Seriously, Alice doesn't shut up about her in the books, I would think they would at least bring her up. 2. If you're going to give the characters names (which I like) USE THEM! Don't just mention them once out of the whole friggin movie and then continue to call them "Hatter" and "The Red Queen". Use their names, that's why they are there! _

_On another note, I realize I never gave the first chapter a name...so I'm just going to call it "Pilot Chapter" XD. _


	3. Reunion

_Hello my dear readers. How are you all doing? Anyway, here is the latest chapter. I finished most of it last night while watching Mulan. It's such a shame that Linda Woolverton could help create something as amazing as Mulan (even though she is only credited as "additional story material) and Beauty and the Beast and yet create the version of Alice we got. Really, I was expecting so much more from her. Back on topic. It is slightly longer than the previous two (again, SLIGHTLY) but the chapters will probably remain on the shorter side. I'm still wrestling with various ideas. Also, it should be noted that this story was recently moved to the Alice in Wonderland, 2010 section. Just thought I would make everyone aware of this! Thank you all for the reviews and, honestly, keep them coming! I also want constructive criticism since for some reason I am finding it very difficult to keep these characters in character....in particular Alice. Notes will be at the end of the chapter for references and such. Thanks again!_**

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Reunion**

His eyes were large peridots staring directly at her, full of the deepest affection she had ever seen. His dark orange hair stuck out from underneath his overly large hat which contained pins, peacock feathers (or rather, a very fancy hat pin), and a card reading "10/6". His complexion (or was it merely white paint?) was as pale as snow. A sash composed of different colored spools of thread rested across his deep purple jacket. His pants did not reach his shoes, exposing a miss-matched pair of socks. Yet, despite these collectively odd features, the one aspect of the man that stood out the most was his large smile with a gap in between his two front teeth.

"I didn't think you would return so quickly!" he exclaimed, rushing out of his seat and towards her as if she were the most important thing in the world. However, he did not get far as he paused while still near a table set with tea decorations. "You are a little smaller than when we last parted. Are you on a pishalver diet?" He laughed at his joke, an odd sort of laugh it was. It was then that Alice noticed his other companions who were currently sitting by three tables that were placed together: a small white mouse that giggled with delight (who Alice was certain she remembered) and Thackery who laughed hysterically loud.

"Have some tea!" Thackery exclaimed and threw a teacup in Alice's direction. Alice moved to the side even though the teacup was not going to hit her. It fell on the ground, tea spilling all over the grass.

"I'll have another cup!" the Dormouse Mallymkun replied cheerfully (for Alice began to remember her name). While Mallymkun decided it was best to pour her own cup rather than leave the task to Thackery, the odd man had ceased his laughter. His smile gradually began to fade away as he saw the puzzled expression upon Alice's face. Alice in turn shifted uneasily at his stare, deep down feeling as though she ought to remember the man. The two stared at one another as if communicating. Words were unnecessary. Although Alice could not recall the man, she could feel a connection with him like no other as though the missing space inside her was gradually beginning to fill. Mallymkun eventually caught on to their behavior and her laughter ceased; Thackery, on the other hand, continued with his mad fun, providing the only sound at the moment.

Alice then noticed the man's purple bags (or at least, they appeared to be bags) under his eyes were beginning to grow darker. His eyes were also slightly changing color. The man was clearly aware of this as well and immediately turned away from her.

"Tarrant..." Mallymkun said softly. But it was too late for comforting now. With a swipe of his arm, Tarrant sent an assortment of teacups, teapots, and whatever treats the party had been eating across the table he was closest to, a cry of anger, sadness, and pain escaping from his lips. Thackery jolted from this sudden violent behavior, hiding himself under the round table for protection. Alice flinched as well, moving back a few paces out of fear as her heart was beginning to race. "Tarrant!" Mallymkun exclaimed a second time sternly just as Tarrant was about to push the small round table over.

As if a spell had been lifted, Tarrant ceased his current actions. While Alice could not see Tarrant's face, the bags underneath his eyes were beginning to return to their formal purple color.

"I'm fine," Tarrant said, his voice forced as though he were still quarreling with a demon inside him. Knowing his episode was now over, Thackery came out of his hiding place, quivering slightly. Tarrant looked from Mallymkun to Alice; however, upon seeing the look of horror present upon Alice's face, Tarrant's deep purple jacket transformed to a blue color. "I'm sorry," he added softly.

Tarrant slowly walked over towards Alice as if he were afraid to frighten her again. She knew he was no longer a threat simply by the look in his eyes. There was a certain sadness present in them. He reminded her of a small child who was suddenly lost in the world and his eyes were glassy as though he were on the verge of tears. Alice could not help but to feel guilty as she stared at Tarrant, blaming herself for his current torment.

"Come, have some upelkuchen," Tarrant remarked as he cautiously led Alice to the tables, holding her hand with the upmost care. Alice felt awkward having her tiny hand encompassed in his large, somewhat bandaged one. Yet she knew he was making sure that no harm came to her along the way as though she were a porcelain doll. While Tarrant provided a chair for Alice next to him, Mallymkun took a small piece of cake and placed it on a plate that was in front of Alice's seat.

"Only a little bit," Mallymkun instructed. "Unless you want to break the chair," she added when Alice presented a confused expression.

"No crushing of my chairs!" Thackery exclaimed, nearly breaking his cup of tea out of excitement.

Alice stared at the three for a moment before obediently taking a bite out of the cake. It was easily the most delicious piece of cake she had ever tasted. Yet, she could not associate the taste with anything from her own world. Just as she was about take another bite, Tarrant motioned for her to stop. It was not long before she could feel herself growing. Her clothes tightened as though she were wearing a corset. She gasped at the unpleasant tightness. However, she was glad to be at her normal height again. Why her clothes tightened while eating the cake but did not when she passed through the looking glass, she did not know.

"What did you call this?" Alice inquired, motioning to the cake as she attempted to find some comfort with her clothes.

"Upelkuchen. We can find more proper clothes for you," Tarrant added upon seeing her discomfort.

"That's very kind of you to offer but I don't think Thackery, Mallymkun, or you will have any clothes that will suit me," Alice remarked. Mallymkun and Tarrant stared at one another in confusion.

"So you do remember me!" Thackery exclaimed joyously before pouring tea down his throat. He became jitterier as a result as though the tea were some sort of drug for him. Tarrant sank a little at Thackery's exclamation however he knew not to hold anything against Thackery's madness.

"Alice, what do you remember?" Tarrant inquired, a bit of hope filling his voice.

"Just bits and pieces," Alice replied, shaking her head. "I'm sorry. I came here by accident and would very much like to return to my world but I don't know how to get back." Mallymkun immediately turned to Tarrant upon Alice's remark. However, Tarrant was trying his best to remain calm at her words even though they stung deeply.

"Well, Thackery, Mallymkun, and I will bring you to Marmoreal after Tearty. The White Queen should be able to help you," Tarrant remarked briskly as he did not want to hinder on the subject. Again, Alice provided a puzzle look. "Marmoreal is where the White Queen lives and today is Tearty day where everyone has tea all day long," Tarrant added. Alice nodded as she attempted to process the information.

"I could go there myself. I would hate to cause you trouble," Alice replied. They were already treating her so kindly and yet she could not even remember that she had actually visited Underland before; it still only appeared to be a dream to her. Not to mention, she could not even remember Tarrant.

"We are part of the White Queen's court. It's no trouble at all," Mallymkun informed. Tarrant and even Thackery nodded in agreement. Alice gazed sheepishly down at her plate, biting her lip. What a terrible situation she was currently in. And to think, it was all because she had grown curious of a looking glass. Now she was forced to face people she thought only existed in her dreams who had actually cared for her in reality.

"Have some tea Alice," Tarrant remarked, causing Alice to look up from her plate. "After all, no Tearty day is complete without tea." Quietly, Tarrant graciously poured her a cup of tea. Alice watched as the warm liquid went from the white teapot with a purple top to a small cup. "Don't worry Alice, Mirana—that's the White Queen, you know—will set everything right. If anyone can give you your memory back, she can," he added after he had finishing pouring the tea. He even managed to smile at her. Alice could not help but to smile gratefully back.

"I would like to get my memory back," Alice admitted even though she had never said she wished to recollect her forgotten memories. Yet, now that she had met Tarrant, Mallymkun, and Thackery, Alice wanted nothing more than to be able to remember everything about Underland.

"And in the meantime, if you have any questions, feel free to ask," Tarrant replied, his jacket once again returning to its purple color. For some reason, Alice felt as though the changing of his jacket color was a good thing causing her to relax.

"Well, how do you all serve the White Queen?" Alice inquired, immediately taking Tarrant's offer of assistance.

"That is an excellent question. Thackery here is one of the White Queen's chefs..." Tarrant began. As if on cue, Thackery threw a plate clear across the table, causing it to smash into a far away tree. "...Mallymkun is a royal guard..." Appropriately, Mallymkun displayed her fighting skills with her hatpin, a proud look on her face. Alice could tell she must have been a fierce fighter even though she was so small. "...and I'm a hatter." Alice smiled at the end of Tarrant's explanation as he motioned to his hat. The spools of thread, pins, and hat certainly made sense now. "But now Alice, I have a question for you!" Alice cocked her head to the side. What sort of question could he possibly ask? "Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

Alice pondered this for a moment while Tarrant continued to smile. While he was upset Alice was unable to recall him, he could not help but to amuse himself by asking her this particular question. After all, he had already confessed to her that he hadn't the slightest idea as to what the answer was but she did not need to know that.

"Keep thinking about it," Mallymkun added, trying her best not to giggle at Tarrant's small prank.

"Yes, keep thinking about it," Tarrant encouraged, smiling wider. Alice could not help but to think there was something she was not quite understanding. Yet, despite this, Alice chose to let this pass and enjoy the company of her friends.

The rest of Teatry was filled with utter nonsense as Alice became rather tired of hearing all this new information to the point where she had felt bombarded. She did, however, continue her attempt at recollecting the memories of her previous visit. This did not go as well as she had planned though it was difficult for her to be upset about it as she was having so much fun at the tea party.

"Oh father, I wonder what you would do if you were here," Alice thought to herself. She imagined he would enjoy it very much: probably even more than she. So the day passed and appeared to quickly fall into twilight.

Mirana stood at her balcony, her hands lightly floating in the air as she admired the landscape that lay before her. It was quiet and peaceful now that Iracebeth's rein hand ceased. She inhaled a large, relaxing sigh of relief as she closed her eyes.

But a shadow was lurking behind her menacingly. It watched her for some time, analyzing her. Desperately, it was searching for something within her behavior but all it could find was a calm, collective queen who would not dare to hurt a soul. The shadow was displeased with this deduction. However, it had no choice but to daringly reveal itself.

"Mirana," it called, tempting her to the darkness the white curtain between the balcony and Mirana's room provided. Mirana did not turn to the dark figure but merely opened her eyes, staring forward as if a part of her was expecting the shadow's arrival.

"Stayne," she replied coolly.

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_Oh no, another cliff-hanger. Terribly sorry! _

_Apparently, when looking at the words in Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky", most of the nonsense words are a combination of two or three words. This is why I have named that particular day in Underland "Tearty": it equals "tea" and "party". Don't expect me to come up with names for all days. _

_When reading interviews and such, Hatter was always described as being a "mood ring". They always went on to say his clothes change due to his mood. Well, I was expecting us to actually SEE his clothes transform as opposed to it changing offstage like we got. So expect more of his clothes changing in front of Alice. _

_Peridots are gems or something. I don't know, I looked it up, it's not a typo even though my spell checker says it is. _

_pishalver is the potion that makes one shrink. _

_If Mallymkun seems a bit OCC do not worry. _

_Anne Hathaway always saw her character as having a "dark side". Of course, I thought this would be expanded more in the movie but of course it was not. _

_That's all for now =D.  
_


	4. Three and a Half Impossible Things

_Hello everyone. Well, this one took a while. And, honestly, it wasn't because I lacked ideas. I hate to sound annoying but I was VERY disappointed with the last chapter review wise. I don't mind not getting reviews for chapters but the chapter that I introduced Tarrant? Really? I mean, if it's because you didn't feel Tarrant was in character, I'd like you to review anyway and TELL ME that. It's kind of important. Not to mention, I do have other projects I would like to work on...and if people don't like my Tarrant then why bother, you know? I've got a Beetlejuice one-shot coming up by the way...it's a slow and steady progress though since it's based on the animated series and well...I have yet to watch and remember a majority of the episodes. But anyway, Tarrant is in this chapter so I would like some feedback on him. Facts from the Visual Guide on the bottom. I normally don't do this but PLEASE REVIEW WITH CONSTRUCTIVE COMMENTS. Thank you.  
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* * *

Three and a Half Impossible Things**

"You don't seem surprised," Stayne added as he continued to lurk in the shadows.

"I believe you are forgetting the Oraculum is in my possession Stayne," Mirana replied as she turned around to face him. The moon shone brightly upon them both yet it was still difficult to fully see Stayne hiding behind the curtain: he was still nothing more than a silhouette. She waited patiently for a few minutes before her eyes could adjust. Slowly but surely she finally managed to see his face. His expression was cool and collective despite the tragedy of his left eye that was covered by a black heart-shaped patch. Yet, a straight line could be seen creeping past his patch. Despite her distraction, Mirana's stare was stern the entire time as if challenging him.

A small smirk crept along Stayne's face as he slowly paced away from the curtain, the moonlight shining down above him. His chest armor gleamed in the moon's light and Mirana could see he now possessed a sword at his side. She stared at this with caution and resistance.

"You know what I find interesting?" he began, a hint of sarcasm present in his voice. "I have been planning my escape for some time now...you would think the Oraculum would have warned you of such an event..." he stated confidently. Mirana's heart took a small leap at his words yet her expression remained stern.

"What are you suggesting Stayne?" she inquired, her voice hinting no faults. Of course, Stayne was not expecting her to reveal any such emotion just yet. He knew she had plenty of practice pretending to be the beautiful, delicate queen.

"I am suggesting you knew of my escape from the very moment I hatched the idea. And yet, you did nothing to prevent it," Stayne answered, continuing to provoke her. Mirana was silent at his accusation only causing Stayne to smile more. "Your silence only proves me correct. You know what I think? I think you wanted me to escape."

"Don't you dare accuse me of such treacherous acts Stayne," Mirana replied sharply, her voice beginning to rise. She stopped herself, as if ashamed to be hinting at such emotion. But this only fed Stayne's fire that was beginning to dominate over the White Queen. Mirana attempted to return to her calm composure but her efforts were futile as she fell into the Knave of Heart's trap.

"You act like a perfect queen. But I know what you really are: you are no better than Iracebeth," Stayne continued, his voice now becoming stern. He did not allow his voice to become too loud for the fear of calling attention to the two.

"Stop it," Mirana replied, her voice failing. She felt as though she were shrinking, as if she had taken a bottle of pishalver. Without realizing it, Mirana had taken a few steps back in an attempt to flee this horrible man currently standing in front of her.

"In fact, I would say the darkness in you is far greater than our late queen." These words stung Mirana deeply. Was she no better than her sister? Surely, she did not kill anyone but she was still willing to throw her sister in a prison for the rest of her days without a friend in the world. Was her punishment worse than death?

"If you continue this any longer, I will—" Mirana attempted to say in hopes of defending herself, of making Stayne go away.

"You will what? Hurt me? Funny, I thought you had planned to never hurt a living creature," Stayne quickly jeered back, his voice resuming its once calm nature. For, he now knew he had won the battle between them. She was no longer a threat.

"I will call the guards on you," Mirana threatened. However, her threat was meaningless. With a swift motion, Stayne was at her side, covering Mirana's mouth with a large black glove. She tried to remove his hand from her mouth but she knew deep down this was useless: he was much too tall and strong for her even if she did not have any vows to break.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Stayne whispered as he looked down at the defeated queen. She felt so fragile in his tight grip: as though he could break her with a simple movement. But he knew he needed her alive. "Now, there are a few things we need before we leave..." he continued as he began dragging her in her room. His eyes searched for the items he required. Mirana stared around the room as well. Her eyes traveled to her looking glass. She stared at it for a moment before she noticed an unusual gleam illuminating from the glass. Suddenly, it made sense how Stayne was able to reach Marmoreal so quickly. Stayne noticed Mirana's fixture and smiled. "Yes, did you not notice? The looking glasses have been opened again. I wonder who could have done that?"

Before another word could be spoken, the coy shadow and White Queen were nowhere to be seen. That night, Underland unknowingly slept without its beloved ruler.

Tarrant led the small procession towards Marmoreal with Mallymkun sitting comfortably on top of his hat, her feet dangling over the edge. The sun was still making an effort to rise as they navigated through what Tarrant, Thackery, and Mallymkun had called the Tulgey Wood. Alice walked beside Tarrant, wincing with every step as her shoes were much too small for her feet now. Her dress nearly suffocated her, forcing herself to fall behind every so often. Unfortunately, she would have to wait until they reached Marmoreal for proper clothes.

"Who wants some tea?" Thackery offered as he twitched while walking, a cup of tea in hand. Alice managed to slightly jolt at the sound of his voice as if expecting something to be thrown at her. She quickly regained her composure as she realized nothing would be thrown at her.

"I would love some," Tarrant replied, pulling a teacup out of his pocket. Thackery poured some of his tea into Tarrant's cup before continuing to proceed forward. "Would you like some Alice?" Tarrant offered before he dared to take his own sip.

"No thank you," Alice replied. She did not fully understand how they could be drinking tea when they had all spent the previous day drinking nothing _but_ tea.

"I'll have some," Mallymkun chimed in just before Tarrant was about to take a sip, slightly offended (not to mention, jealous) Tarrant did not offer her any. Tarrant carefully lifted the cup of tea up to Mallymkun, having to stop for a moment in order to accomplish this successfully. Mallymkun took a small sip before the cup was being brought back down by Tarrant. Without bothering to clean the cup in any way, Tarrant sipped his tea. Alice did not bother to make any sort of comment to this action but her expression did demonstrate a hint of unpleasantness.

"How much longer before we arrive?" Alice inquired, the discomfort of her clothing continuing to bother her.

"We still have a ways to go after exiting the Tulgey Wood," Tarrant explained. Alice frowned at the answer. Her eyes searched for a possible exit out of the wood. When none could be seen, they traveled to the sky. Alice's pace slowed as she continued to gaze at the gray, early morning sky.

"I wish I could fly," Alice remarked. If she could fly, she would be able to arrive at Marmoreal quicker and thus be able to change out of her tight clothes. Not to mention, flying would ease her feet ever so much.

"You've already flown," Tarrant answered absentmindedly. Explaining her last adventure to Underland had already become second nature for him. While it pained him to have to describe such trivial events, he could not help but to smile at the fond memories. "On my hat."

"Have I?" Alice inquired as she stared at Tarrant's hat with Mallymkun on top. Alice must have been very small to accomplish such a feat as flying on Tarrant's hat. She tried to picture herself at such a small height, flying on Tarrant's hat.

"Yes," Tarrant answered reassuringly. Mallymkun nodded in agreement, recalling when Tarrant had taken Alice away from the tea party on his hat without her. For, Mallymkun loved being on Tarrant's hat as it made her feel very tall and always provided a wonderful view of their surroundings.

"That must have been fun. It's a shame I can't do that in my world," Alice replied, wondering what it must have felt like to fly. She tried to remember, hoping the feeling would return or—at least—the memory of it. Yet, the only thing she could remember was riding a dog, the wind whipping past her and everything appearing to be rather large. While this memory was wonderful, Alice still wished she could remember what it was like to fly.

Due to Alice's pondering, the conversation died shortly after her last remark. The party continued to walk in almost complete silence. Again, Thackery was the only one providing any sort of noise as he sipped his tea rather loudly and occasionally burst into fits of laughter while hopping along. Alice tried her best to suppress her laughter yet a few chuckles escaped here and there.

At some point, Alice was forced to remove her shoes. They were simply too tight and she could feel potential blisters beginning to form. Although it was not the best thing to do since they were still in the Tulgey Wood, she had very little alternatives. Tarrant had not brought any pishalver with him and thus, Alice could not shrink herself. Her feet stung occasionally when she stepped on a branch the wrong way but she would much rather suffer from this than those awful shoes.

"It's almost breakfast. Have you come up with five more impossible things Alice?" Tarrant suddenly inquired. Alice stared at him, her heart skipping a beat.

"What?" she returned, surprised he was mentioning such a thing.

"You once told me you sometimes could believe in as many as six impossible things before breakfast," Tarrant explained. Alice was quiet for a moment as the memories of her father saddened her. She was also surprised she had told something so personal to Tarrant. Yet, she recalled speaking of six impossible things as she attempted to slay the Jabberwock so perhaps it was not as unusual as she had originally anticipated.

"My father used to say that all the time," Alice said quietly. Tarrant did not say anything as he was afraid of speaking about something he should not bring up especially when he had no knowledge of the situation. The two exchanged brief glances at one another. "…he died when I was young," Alice continued, seeing Tarrant was clearly unsure of the situation.

"I'm sorry," Tarrant replied quietly. Again, the conversation died as the two were afraid to say anything more to one another. Tarrant's jacket became a shade of blue once again as they pressed on. No one brought this fact up however.

Finally, after what seemed forever, Alice could see a potential exit to the Tulgey Wood. She sighed with relief. Walking through a wood barefoot was beginning to get tiresome. However, the closer they approached the opening, the clearer it became that this was not the exit to the Tulgey Wood but rather a clearing of some sort. With each passing step, Tarrant's movements became increasingly slower as if he were afraid to continue forward.

It only took Alice one look to realize something terribly wrong had happened to the clearing. Debris was everywhere and the ground was covered with ashes as if a fire had passed by. Mallymkun jumped off of Tarrant's hat and onto Alice's shoulder as Tarrant began to walk far ahead of the party, as if in some sort of trance. Mallymkun and even Thackery were silent as Tarrant bent down to the ground.

"What happened here?" Alice asked quietly as she gazed around the desolate area.

"This is where The Red Queen attacked on Horunvendush Day with the Jabberwock. She wiped out the entire Hightopp Clan," Mallymkun explained, her voice equally as quiet as she moved to Thackery's shoulder.

"All except one…" Thackery added, trying to suppress his usual high, eccentric voice. Both Thackery and Mallymkun looked towards Tarrant shortly after the small explanation. Alice's eyes followed their gaze. She stared at Tarrant for a while. To think, someone as eccentric as he was had suffered so much. Her father's death had caused her grief yet she could not imagine the amount of pain Tarrant must have felt after losing everyone in his clan.

Alice quietly walked towards Tarrant who was still kneeling on the ground. He did not appear to be staring at anything in particular. Yet, he must have been deep in thought for he did not hear Alice approaching him. As she stood behind him, she came to notice burn marks within the fabric of his hat. Even the card reading "10/6" was burnt to some degree. The burn marks seemed to increase towards the brim of the hat and Alice guessed Tarrant's purple fabric was covering a majority of the damage. He must have been here when the Red Queen attacked (or so she deduced).

"Tarrant…" Alice called quietly. Tarrant turned to look up at her yet he was still clearly lost in thought. Alice bent down beside him, wrapping her arms around his waist, attempting to comfort him. He tensed at Alice's gesture but relaxed shortly after. His jacket transformed into a shade of indigo. Alice held onto Tarrant a bit more tightly, nearly about to cry. Yet, she was not crying Tarrant only, but for the loss of her father as well. Tarrant in turn held onto Alice's arms as if understanding this. Mallymkun and Thackery merely looked on as the two silently confided in one another of their loss.

* * *

_Can you guess what the three and a half impossible things are? -Honestly, I had three and a half originally but some of you will probably come up with more than what I intended. The title really just came from the Goofy Movie when Goofy asks *half asleep, mind you* "How many cups of sugar does it take to get to the moon?" and Max answers "Three and a half?" Then Goofy goes back to sleep. _

_There are supposed to be burn marks on Tarrant's hat. I haven't seen the movie in a while but from my memory, it was a little hard to see that. And the long purple scarf is meant to cover the burn marks. _

_They call the Jabberwock "Jabberwocky" but this is incorrect: the poem is called "Jabberwocky" but the creature is the Jabberwock. I read that somewhere and then I looked at the poem to confirm it. _

_Hightopp Clan was wiped out. Yup. Tarrant was the only one that lived. They basically show this but I mean...I would have liked it to be a bit more clear that EVERYONE died. But then again, I'm the optimistic person who thinks "well maybe some people got away =D"_

_I wish I could fly.  
_


	5. Hats and Hatpins

_Hello everyone! First of all, thank you for the reviews from last time. Really, they do mean a lot and they keep me from stopping this story. Or at least, that was the function of them before. Although this chapter took FOREVER the good news is I pretty much know the plot from here on out. Yeah, this update took a while because I had no idea what to do at one point. But now that's all straightened out so ...yay! Here the next chapter and reviews are encouraged! We got some new familiar faces coming in =D. Enjoy~_**_  
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Hats and Hatpins**

The castle was white marble, appearing as though it were touching the blue sky while the tops of the castle oddly resembled chess pieces. Oddly enough, the landscaping surrounding the castle was grown in such a way that the entire field resembled a chess board with squares of dark and light green grass. When entering the open courtyard, the four were greeted by beautiful cherry blossoms. Pink, feathery petals lightly fell to the ground: some managing to rest in Alice's hair or Mallymkun's fur. Thackery was moving too much for any petals to land on him.

Alice stared at the castle in wonderment. She knew this place. Yet she did not show it for Tarrant was doing such a wonderful job explaining everything that Alice did not want to spoil it. Mallymkun assisted him by pointing her hatpin at whatever Tarrant mentioned. Thackery nearly threw his cup a few times at the object of discussion mostly because he was not paying full attention to the conversation. Luckily, he managed to resist every time. How he managed to do that, Alice had no clue.

"Before we meet the White Queen," Tarrant was saying as they ascended the white steps, "Mallymkun will take you to find better clothes." Alice enjoyed the idea of finding better clothes. Her feet were currently suffering from cuts, bruises, and blisters. The smooth white steps felt as comfortable as a soft bed for her feet. Two guards stood at the entrance to the main section of the palace but upon recognizing the group of travelers moved out of the way, allowing them to pass. Alice wondered if she had met these particular guards before. She did not think so however as they appeared to be unable to recollect her and were looking more at Tarrant and Thackery. "Now while you two are off, I shall be at my work. When you are finished, you can come find me and we'll be off to the see the White Queen." While Tarrant was providing his instructions, Mallymkun nimbly climbed down from his hat, preparing to lead Alice to wherever it was she would take her.

"This way Alice," Mallymkun stated proudly as she began to lead the way once she had touched the floor. Alice began to follow Mallymkun obediently. She turned her head once to see Tarrant and Thackery part ways before continuing to follow Mallymkun.

As though she were on guard duty, Mallykun held her hatpin firmly as she led the way. Alice wondered if there was really any reason to appear on such high alert or if Mallymkun merely wanted an excuse to utilize her hatpin. Considering there was hardly anyone in the hallways, Alice believed it must have been the latter.

Alice felt a small sense of pride as she could recollect walking down these very same halls with the White Queen (Mirana her name was?) after she had been given some pishalver. She knew_ exactly_ where Mallymkun was taking her (at least, they were heading in the same direction): her old room. However, Alice was surprised Mallymkun knew where her room had been since there were probably countless spare rooms throughout the palace. Or perhaps it was merely a coincidence that Mallymkun was choosing this room out of all the others (by this time, Alice was absolutely sure they were going to the same room as opposed to another spare room).

Because the doors were so large, Alice opened them for Mallymkun before entering a large spare room. Like everything in the castle, the walls and furniture were white. Alice had never seen so much white in all her life. Without hesitating, Alice moved to her old wardrobe and began shifting through the clothes hidden within. Mallymkun waited patiently, practicing with her hatpin.

"Did Tarrant give you that hatpin?" Alice inquired curiously once she had decided upon what outfit to wear. Mallymkun jumped a bit, not expecting Alice to speak (she had been concentrating very hard at her craft). She then gazed down at her hatpin for a moment as if processing the information.

"For my birthday. It's been the best present in the world," Mallymkun answered, clear affection in her words. The question had brought back fond memories of her eyeing Tarrant's hatpins, wanting so desperately to use them as weapons since she was much too small to hold a sword. Finally, Tarrant had given her one for her birthday so that she may be able to protect herself if the need ever arise and Mallymkun practiced with her hatpin everyday. Alice smiled warmly before moving behind the changing screen as she found Mallymkun's words to be sweet. What a nice friendship they must have had. "Alice..." Mallymkun called in a serious tone once the memories had passed.

"Yes?" Alice inquired, feeling slightly uncomfortable by her tone of voice. It seemed rather sudden considering the current positive conversation.

"You mustn't hurt Tarrant," Mallymkun instructed. A small bit of jealous crept over her as she uttered those words but she felt it needed to be said for Tarrant's sake.

"I don't intend to," Alice replied, confused by Mallymkun's words. After all the kindness he had shown her, she would never dream of hurting him. She was doing everything she could to remember him. However, Mallymkun meant something much more than merely recollecting him yet she could tell from Alice's tone that this was not being understood. Due to the clear lack of understanding, Mallymkun said no more on the matter though as much as it hurt, she wished Alice did remember and could understand what she was speaking of. For, it was clear Alice was unaware of the deeper feelings Tarrant possessed for Alice other than friendship. If Alice could just comprehend that then everything would be fine with Tarrant. And that was all Mallymkun wanted.

Just as Alice was buttoning her top, she began to hear an odd sound coming from the other side of the screen. The sound was a deep, soothing rumble, almost as if something were _purring_.

"Chessur, get out!" Mallymkun ordered, her hatpin pointing in the direction where two large, green eyes were beginning to form. Alice did not say anything on the matter at hand but merely listened. Chessur?

"Trying to keep Alice all for yourself are you?" a calm voice replied though the purring had far from vanished. Alice had unmistakably heard that voice before: it must have been the cat that always grinned. Yes, Alice recalled that cat: it was difficult _not_ to.

"No," Mallymkun replied, as if offended by such an offer. Alice could not help but to peer from behind the screen to find the large, grey cat floating just inches away from the screen.

"Chessur? What are you doing here?" Alice inquired. A pang of guilt filled her as she merely repeated his name from Mallymkun and could not recall it otherwise. Then again, at least she could recall him. Chessur lightly glided forward so that he was able to turn around and face Alice.

"Alice, so good to see you," he stated, his eyes widening with delight, his purr becoming increasingly louder, his smile becoming larger. "As for my being here, I could ask you the same thing."

"You're supposed to be at Salazen Grum!" Mallymkun exclaimed, pointing her hatpin accusingly as if she did not trust him. It was very difficult for her to trust a cat after all.

"Yet, unfortunately something came up..." Chessur replied. Mallymkun waited patiently as if expecting Chessur to further explain himself. However, he did not offer such answers. It was much more fun to play guessing games and offer small pieces of information at a time.

"I'm here to see the White Queen," Alice interjected as she came from behind the screen, not wanting to continue this confusing talk. She felt so much better in her new light blue silk pants and matching top: the very same clothes she had picked out the last time she was there. In her own way, she wanted to demonstrate she had not _completely _forgotten Underland.

"Oh..." Chessur stated as if there were something vitally wrong with that statement. "You know...the Queen's most trusted members of her court are currently in a meeting. They've been in there for quite some time." His body rolled around in the air as he spoke, as if not liking the fact he was remaining still.

"Now? How do you know?" Mallymkun pressed, growing suspicious of his remark especially when he was not at his current mission.

"Well, let's just say a White Rabbit told me," Chessur answered, grinning as his tail flicked slightly in amusement.

"If there's a meeting going on, why aren't you there?" Mallymkun continued, failing to see any validity in his accusations. Judging from Mallymkun's remarks, Alice was beginning to wonder if she should trust Chessur as well even though she recalled him as being a trustworthy companion.

"I'd still much rather avoid politics when possible. Meetings such as the one currently occurring can be rather dull." Without warning, Chessur's body was beginning to gradually fade away. Alice watched with fascination as his tail and head disappeared, leaving only his grin. "I would get going if I were you," he said before his large grin had fully vanished. Alice and Mallymkun stared at one another, not fully sure what to make of the situation.

"We have to get Tarrant," Mallymkun finally stated as she began to scurry out of the room. Alice briskly followed behind her as Mallymkun began to travel in unfamiliar territory. She was traveling very fast for a mouse. Luckily, Alice's long strides did not make it difficult for her to catch up to Mallymkun however she did have to walk rather quickly.

"But what about Thackery?" Alice questioned as she turned around to look at the direction of the kitchen (or, at least, where she had seen Thackery go just a little while ago).

"Leave him be...he doesn't need to be tangled in this mess," Mallymkun replied quietly. Again, Alice became rather confused by Mallymkun's statement but chose to remain silent. Yet, Alice could not help but to ponder Thackery and feel as though some tragedy might have befallen him at one point in time. "Whatever it is, it must be very important if they didn't wait for Tarrant."

"But I thought Tarrant is a hatter, why would he need to be there?" Alice inquired.

"Because Tarrant was one of the leading figureheads of the Underland Underground Resistance when the Red Queen ruled Underland. He's the one that sent McTwisp—the White Rabbit—after you last time." Alice was not entirely sure what to make of the information currently given to her. It made sense that someone who had lost so much would seek some sort of vengeance or, at least, lead a resistance. Yet, Alice had difficulty imagining Tarrant as a resistance leader. He seemed too kind and eccentric for that sort of thing. But, more importantly, he was positively fragile. She had seen enough in the clearing to know that much. Perhaps that is what Mallymkun meant when she had warned Alice...

Before Alice knew it, Mallymkun had stopped in front of another large door. However, this one was open with welcome arms. Immediately upon entering the room, Alice was dazzled by the large assortment of hats filling the room. Tarrant was in the center of the room, busily working at a new creation which was white (no doubt for the White Queen). Alice quietly walked behind him, marveling at his work. He possessed such concentration Alice dared not disturb him and instead merely looking on with wonderment.

"What does the '10/6' mean on your tag?" Alice found herself inquiring despite her original intent on being silent. She had originally thought it was a price tag of some sort but now looking at his creations, she could clearly see there were no other tags. At this point, Mallymkun was climbing up Tarrant's table, attempting to get his attention. Tarrant looked suddenly at Alice, not realizing she had been there. He briefly looked up as if to stare at his hat tag before addressing her.

"It is my clan number," he stated rather proudly however there was a hint of sadness in his voice. Alice gave an apologetic look, regretting she even asked the question especially after Mallymkun's warning.

"Tarrant, there's a meeting taking place now," Mallymkun stated, now standing directly in front of him. Tarrant gazed down upon her, a confused expression present upon his face.

"Well we better go if there's a meeting taking place," Tarrant stated as he lowered his hand for Mallymkun to walk on. He placed his hatpins down before leading the way. Alice watched Tarrant cautiously to see if his clothes transformed, still feeling guilty for her previous question. Luckily, they did not. Mallymkun climbed on top of Tarrant's shoulder and sat comfortably as they left the room of hats behind.

"Do you feel better Alice?" Tarrant inquired, their footsteps echoed along the empty hall. He recognized the clothing she had picked out however he did not dare to ask her if she remembered wearing those very same clothes the last time when they were on the balcony together. A part of him was afraid of getting his hopes up. Besides, they were about to see the White Queen and Alice would have her memory back in no time anyway.

"Yes," Alice replied, taking in the fact she felt so much more comfortable in these clothes.

"The White Queen should be in the meeting. Many of our friends should be as well," Tarrant continued. "And I'm sure they'd be glad to see you."

"And I'll be glad to see them again. I already saw Chessur," Alice replied.

"He's the one that told us about the meeting," Mallymkun interjected. Tarrant's expression became rather troubled upon this information though he did not say anything. Wasn't Chessur supposed to be in Salazen Grum?

Alice stared agape at the enormous doors leading to where the meeting was apparently taking place. Two guards once again stood by the door, clearly to keep anyone from entering. However, one look at Tarrant and Alice and the guards parted, opening the door for the three. Alice felt a bit uncomfortable as the guards appeared to recognize her this time.

The door was only opened a crack yet Alice could immediately see an assortment of odd creatures seated around a white table. Their eyes darted towards the door; their talk immediately ceased as the three entered.

"Alice! Thank goodness it's you!" the White Rabbit—McTwisp—exclaimed. "Come in quickly and shut the door!"

Alice was not sure how to react to the urgency but she, Tarrant, and Mallykun knew something was terribly wrong for a key figure among the court was missing: the White Queen.

* * *

_Okay, now I'm not entirely sure where I read this but I could have sworn I read somewhere that Tarrant is the one that sent McTwisp to find Alice. I looked through my Visual Guide and couldn't find it. I'm thinking maybe perhaps they mentioned it in the old script somewhere or even in the movie? If someone can confirm this, I'd greatly appreciate it! Everything else should be faithful to the visual guide...yeah not a lot of notes this time. But I have a bunch for next time ^_~_


	6. White Court

_Hello everyone. Well, here is the next chapter. As a fair warning, this is heavily dialogue based because it's a VERY long meeting. So yeah, lots of talking. There's still descriptions of what characters are thinking and what not but I just thought I'd ought to warn people. Also, I remember getting a review about a chapter not really being in Alice's perspective. I just want to clarify that this story is not going to be in Alice's perspective all the time. It's closer to a third person omniscient than third person singular. In case you didn't know. But yeah, it's the only way for certain character arcs to occur...Anyway, enjoy! Please review and criticize where necessary.  
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White Court**

The doors immediately closed behind the three. Alice stood dumbfounded as it appeared as though all eyes were upon her now. She shifted uneasily as her eyes moved from McTwisp to the twins she recognized from last time (though why children were a part of the court, she had no clue). There was a Dodo, a Unicorn, a Lion, a man, and a woman among others: all of whom Alice could not recall. McTwisp sat where she guessed the White Queen was supposed to be seated. This was difficult to determine as there was no "head" of the round table yet McTwisp's seat was directly in front of the three as they had stepped in.

"Where is the White Queen?" Tarrant inquired cautiously as his eyes moved around the room as if she might appear at any moment from a floating bubble or some other odd form of transportation. The eyes of the court shifted uneasily towards one another as though none of them were willing to answer.

"Well—She's—she's gone," McTwisp finally admitted after some stuttering.

"What do you mean gone?" Tarrant replied sharply, his voice sounding as though it were possibly on the rise of another rage. However, his eyes had not transformed and both Alice and Mallymkun knew there was no danger yet.

In response to Tarrant's reaction, the entire court became alarmed: not because they feared Tarrant's rage but because they did not want unwanted ears to hear such talk.

"Not so loud!" McTwisp remarked though his response was just as loud as Tarrant's had been.

"She has been missing since this morning," the man, who was at McTwisp's right paw, began to explain. He was elderly but appeared as though he were full of experience; his head was predominately bald yet white hair crept around the sides and he possessed a large white mustache. Alice studied these features for a moment as she, Tarrant, and Mallymkun sat down. "We've searched the entire palace but she's nowhere to be found," the man continued.

"The Oraculum did not tell you where she was?" Tarrant continued, attempting to remain calm. However, Alice could tell from his tone of voice that he was becoming agitated. His jacket was beginning to seep into a deep red as though his inner rage was forcing itself to the surface.

"Well—that—that's missing too," McTwisp continued. His paws lightly touched one another out of nervousness. Whether this nervousness was due to Tarrant's color transformation, Alice was not sure. She did know that whatever McTwisp was stating was not very good news as Tarrant remained completely silent. Oraculum...the word seemed oddly familiar to her.

"It's alright Nivens," the woman remarked gently, attempting to sooth Nivens' skittish behavior. She then turned towards the three. "As you can see, we had to call this meeting immediately. We don't want too many people knowing she's gone. It could easily lead to chaos amongst the people of Underland and potentially encourage a possible escape attempt from Iracebeth and Stayne." Tarrant merely nodded in acknowledgment as though they had come to an understanding as to why Tarrant had not been informed the meeting was taking place.

While Alice felt glad in a way that the attention was no longer focused on her, at the same time she felt as though she were being left out. After all, she was not very knowledgeable in Underland politics and could not assist in any way. It was as though she were still an outsider, unwelcomed despite the initial encouragement the group had given her when she walked in.

"Is there any sort of clue as to where she might be?" Mallymkun inquired, a sense of worry in her voice.

"None whatsoever I'm afraid," the vibrant blue Dodo replied as he shook his head.

"Findin' the White Queen is goin' to be like findin' a needle in a 'aystack," one of the twins added.

"Yeah, only instead of a needle it's the White Queen and instead of a 'aystack it's Underland," the other twin concluded. Alice occasionally glanced at Tarrant while the conversation continued as he chose to remain silent. Since he was supposed to be an important figurehead, Alice assumed he would be offering his opinion more. However, Tarrant purposely remained silent as he did not agree with the politics that were currently taking place. If Underland survived the torment of the Red Queen, the citizens had the right to learn of their missing White Queen. Of course, he was clearly the minority now and did not stand a chance defending his belief.

"We can send out small search parties to find her," the Unicorn interjected. "The real problem is how we manage to keep a majority of the Underland population from knowing she's gone."

"I'm more concerned about the Oraculum. Why would that be missing? Unless she saw something unsettling within its contents," the Lion argued. Oraculum...that word again. Judging from the Lion's last statement, Alice guessed perhaps it was the large scroll of paper that was able to foreshadow future events.

"Obviously Alice. Oracle, Oraculum...it's the only plausible explanation," Alice thought to herself, feeling rather silly for not being able to realize such a simple connection. She wondered if other words the people of Underland used had similar connections with the English language.

"As mentioned before, we can send a small group of people to look for both the White Queen and the Oraculum. But, in the meantime, we need to come up with a way to explain the Queen's absence," Nivens remarked.

"We can say she is ill but we'll need a distraction of some sort to keep the public's attention away from her," the man replied, placing a hand on his chin in an attempt to think of a plausible distraction.

"Why don't we use Alice's return as a distraction?" the woman stated. Everyone's face appeared to light up at the idea. Tarrant looked over towards Alice only to find an unpleasant expression present upon her face. He could not blame her: the idea of her being a political tool did not please him at all.

"That's a wonderful idea," the Lion stated.

"Everyone will want to know of Alice's return. It's the perfect distraction," the Unicorn responded. The sudden encouragement was causing Alice to become increasingly alarmed.

"That isn't going to work I'm afraid," Tarrant interjected. The room suddenly became quiet as the focus shifted towards him. "Alice can't remember everything from her last trip to Underland. She won't know what to do or say." Alice shifted uneasily as the truth was revealed yet at the same time she was glad Tarrant was able to inform everyone before she got mixed up in the politics of Underland. Everyone glanced at each other, unsure how to respond to this information. The gloom that appeared caused Alice to feel guilty in a way.

Just as the group was about to offer further suggestions, Nivens' ear twitched as an idea had hatched into his brain.

"We can search through the library for a possible remedy to Alice's forgetfulness. And in the meantime, we can school Alice on Underland: everything she should know from the last visit."

"That might just work..." the Dodo replied slowly in an attempt to conjure any flaws that may be with Nivens' proposal.

"Of course, that's only if Alice is willing to do it," Nivens continued as he looked towards Alice. Alice was not sure how she should answer. She did not particularly enjoy the idea of being used as a political tool. However, at the same time, it was clearly important that the people of Underland were unaware of the current situation.

Without warning, the doors burst open as a soldier came into the room before Alice could provide an answer. Everyone jumped at the sudden intrusion and immediately focused on the door just as they had done when Alice, Tarrant, and Mallymkun arrived.

"I apologize for the intrusion but there's terrible news," the soldier said as he entered the room, a sense of urgency present in his voice.

"What is it?" the man responded, clearly irritated by the sudden intrusion.

"The Knave of Hearts, Stayne, he's—he's escaped!" the soldier exclaimed. The White Court attempted to remain as calm and collective as possible. However, they uneasily stared at one another. The soldier gazed at the many faces of the court until he realized something rather peculiar. "Where is the White Queen?"

"Never mind that now," the man returned, brushing past the unwanted subject. "When did this happen?"

"About two days ago," the soldier answered promptly. The gears in Alice's mind clicked at this information. That was about how long she had been in Underland. How odd that Underland's savior and worst threat should be unleashed on the same day (for if there was one person whose name Alice remembered, it was the horrible Knave of Hearts Stayne). It could be no coincidence that such a feat would occur. No, there must have been a reason for it...

"Thank you, that will be all," the man was saying as he urged the soldier away. Once the door's shut, chaos ensued amongst the court once more.

"How could this have happened?" Nivens exclaimed, throwing his paws into the air. The bottom half of his body began to shake at the mere thought of Stayne invading the palace.

"He's probably on his way as we speak!" the Lion insisted.

"What if he stole the Oraculum and took the White Queen with him?" Alice suddenly found herself stating, her voice slightly timid. All noise ceased once more to the point where Mallymkun's hatpin falling to the floor would have been heard easily. "I wouldn't put it past him to do something like that," she added a bit more confidently upon seeing the eyes focused on her.

"My dear, that is highly unlikely," the man replied gently. "Stayne was being held in a fortress located in the Outlands. It's at least a two day's journey. And then he would have had to sneak past all the guards." Alice sank a little in her seat at this information, embarrassed she had even suggested it.

"There is one thing we're forgetting," Nivens stated cautiously. "Chess returned from Salazen Grum early because he suspected the looking glasses might have been opened."

"Did he try to go through one in Salazen Grum?" Tarrant inquired. Well, this certainly explained why Alice and Mallymkun had seen Chessur in the palace just minutes before. The blasted cat should have told Alice and Mallymkun the truth from the beginning instead of playing these games! Alice, meanwhile, listened intently at the mention of the looking glasses. After all, she had passed through one just two days ago. However, by the way the conversation was going, that did not seem like a very good thing.

"No, he didn't," Nivens answered.

"Well why not?" Mallymkun interjected, annoyed that Chess would not think to actually go through a looking glass to test it.

"I don't know, he didn't say," Nivens replied, not liking the fact that such forceful questions were being directed at him rather than at Chess. Of course, Chess was conveniently not present at the moment and if he was he was no doubt purposely invisible to avoid confrontation.

"I went through a looking glass. Around the same time Stayne escaped," Alice stated suddenly, her voice more firm this time. No one said anything for a moment as the information sank in.

"Things just keep 'ettin worse," one of the twins stated.

"And worse," the other added.

"Why? What's so terrible about the looking glasses?" Alice inquired.

"The looking glasses were a means of transportation," Tarrant began explaining, "You simply walked through one looking glass and ended up in another part of Underland. However, they proved to be quite dangerous as it's difficult to control where one ends up in Underland."

"Not to mention any threat to Underland could easily travel a great distance in a short amount of time... resulting in a massive shut down of all looking glasses years ago," the Dodo stated.

"Knowing that, it makes all the more sense that the White Queen and Oraculum are missing. Stayne must have taken them as Alice suggested by passing through a looking glass," the woman continued.

"And we're all just fools in Stayne's eye right now. He's probably looking at the meeting in Salazen Grum as we speak," the man remarked in a melancholic tone.

"Why would he be in Salazen Grum?" Alice further inquired. She was still unsure as to what Salazen Grum was at this point.

"Now that he has the Oraculum and could theoretically watch our every move, there's no need for him to hide," Nivens answered gravely.

"Especially if he wants to control Underland like the Red Queen," Tarrant added, his Scottish accent becoming more apparent. "Salazen Grum is where her palace was."

"I thought the Oraculum only provided pictures," Alice remarked. From her memory, there were no words on the Oraculum at all. She clearly recalled looking down at the piece of parchment where an image of herself reading the Oraculum was moving while Absolem narrated.

"It does," Mallymkun answered, not seeing the point of Alice's question.

"So he can only see what we're doing. He can't hear what we're saying," Alice further stated as a plausible plan was beginning to fill her mind.

"That's correct," Nivens replied.

"In that case, why don't I become his distraction as opposed to the public's distraction?" Alice offered.

"What do you mean?" the man inquired as he raised an eyebrow, interest filling him.

"If I go to Salazen Grum, he will follow me with the Oraculum. But while he's focusing on me, someone else less noticeable could follow," Alice stated. After all, since he could not keep his eye off of her while she was at the Red Queen's palace, Alice was certain he would follow her through the Oraculum.

"Yes, we could send you with a small party of important figureheads during the Underland Underground Resistance so he won't suspect anyone will be following," the man added as Alice's plan became more clear to him, his voice rising with enthusiasm at the concept.

"And if that doesn't work, we still have the knowledge of the looking glasses at our advantage. If he sees we don't use the looking glasses, he might suspect we don't know about them yet," the woman added triumphantly. The court was once again in high spirits as Alice's plan seemed like their best option at this point. A smiled formed on Alice's face as she gazed around the more optimistic court.

"I will go with Alice to Salazen Grum," Tarrant offered as he rose from the table rather suddenly. If Alice must endure this perilous journey, he would be there by her side.

"Me too," Mallymkun added as she stood up as well though it did not appear as powerful as Tarrant's rise.

"You may need someone to lead you around Salazen Grum," Nivens stated, inadvertently offering to accompany the party. However, there was a hint of reluctance in his tone as though he was unsure whether or not to volunteer for the mission.

"We're comin' too," the twins said as they stood up together. Since everyone else was standing, they figured they might as well do the same.

"Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, I'm afraid this journey may be a bit too dangerous for you two," the woman interjected, a hint of concern present in her voice.

"We 'an 'andle it," Tweedle Dee stated firmly.

"Yeah, we 'andle Frabjous Day just fine," Tweedle Dum added.

"I would love for you two to accompany me," Alice remarked, smiling as she stood up with everyone. And so it was that those who had assisted her on the long journey to Frabjous Day would be the same helping her on this new, unpredictable one. The man looked over the volunteers with approval, a small smile present on his face.

"Now that this is settled, I think Alice ought to still undergo some schooling before she departs. If we prepare diligently, you should be able to leave first thing tomorrow morning," he said confidently.

"Alice, come with me while the meeting continues," the Dodo remarked as he moved away from his seat. "I will take you to see the Mock Turtle." Alice nodded before following the Dodo out of the room.

"Yes, and when you are finished escorting Alice, search the White Queen's library for the necessary potion to relinquish her lost memories," the man instructed just before the doors closed behind the two as Alice wondered what exactly a Mock Turtle was.

* * *

_If I failed at the Tweedle's dialogue...please...please let me know. I really tried my best. It was hard. _

_I wonder who the man could possibly be? Seriously, I was really irritated that the White Knight was only in the movie for like 30 seconds before dying. So I thought I'd give the 'other' White Knight more importance. And did you know Walt Disney originally wanted a romance between the White Knight and Alice in his version of Alice in Wonderland? Pretty interesting, right? So yeah, that just further adds to my reasoning of adding the White Knight even though I don't mention directly it's him. But it is. _

_I also don't think Alice would remember the Dodo very well because she hardly saw him. He was hardly in the movie in my opinion. _

_The Lion and the Unicorn weren't in the movie. The woman kind of was...I mean..there were women around the White Queen lol. But yes, the Lion and the Unicorn were added because I don't like how so many versions of the Alice books excludes them. At least, the versions I tend to look into. So I thought I'd give them some 'screen time'. _

_The Mock Turtle wasn't in the movie either but in the original script, the screenwriter does mention him. Plus, it is only appropriate that he is the one to teach Alice. _

_And...that's it...I believe =D.  
_


	7. Lessons From the Mock Turtle

_Oh my goodness, finally! I feel like I've been working on this chapter forever. I was originally going to finish it over the weekend but then I had the random compulsion to finish all of Full Metal Alchemist (the manga) because I heard it was ending in two months. Thank goodness I finished it yesterday because the new chapter was released today and it was awesome! But, sadly, that is not why we are here. We are here because LS just finished chapter seven and it's eight pages long. Yeah, have fun reading this one. Once again, reviews are STRONGLY encouraged, constructive criticism is appreciated and enjoy. _

_I have a feeling you are all going to like this chapter.  
_

__**

* * *

Lessons From the Mock Turtle**

"Pardon me," Alice remarked to the Dodo with his cane in hand as he lead her down the many white halls to where ever it was they were going. She had never been in this part of the vast castle. "But what is a Mock Turtle?"

"A Mock Turtle is the thing Mock Turtle soup is made of," the Dodo replied simply as his body moved from side to side with each passing step.

"I don't believe I've ever had Mock Turtle soup," Alice responded.

"Well you really must try some one day," the Dodo remarked. Shortly after this statement, he stopped short to turn towards Alice. "Don't mention the soup to the Mock Turtle though," the Dodo cautioned, whispering as though the Mock Turtle may be lurking close by before continuing forward.

It was not long before Alice began to hear a faint sound. At first, she could not quite place what the odd sound was. The closer the two came to the mysterious noise, the louder it became. Alice eventually came to realize the sound was horrible sobbing. What sort of creature could be crying so loudly in the White Queen's palace she wondered? Perhaps it was someone who knew the perils the country of Underland was currently facing.

"He's at it again the poor fellow," the Dodo remarked, mostly to himself. The uncontrollable sobbing was growing unusually loud and Alice deduced they were coming close to the source of the wailing. However, Alice was not expecting the Dodo to stop directly in front of the door from which the sobbing appeared to be coming from. Awkwardly with one of his wings, the Dodo opened the door to which the wailing increased to an excruciating level.

At first, Alice was not entirely sure what she was looking at. She was certain they were in some sort of study as the room was decorated with maps and pictures that appeared to portray events in Underland history. In the center of the room was a creature who possessed the body of a turtle but the head of what appeared to be some foreign creature that Alice could not identify. Tears fell from the odd animal's eyes, adding to the small puddle that had begun to form on the floor.

"Settle down old fellow," the Dodo attempted to soothe as he stepped forward. However, the Mock Turtle continued to sob. Alice felt sorry for the poor thing as she came closer. The Dodo, on the other hand, appeared to be slightly irritated. This was to be expected however as the Mock Turtle appeared to never stop wailing. "See here, you've been ordered to teach Alice some history."

"_The_ Alice?" the Mock Turtle inquired between sobs, looking at Alice to confirm this information. Well, she possessed blond hair like last time however she seemed to be much older. Either way, it was an order (no doubt given by the White Queen herself) that must be followed. "Once...I was a real turtle, living at the shores of the Crimson Sea!" And here, the Mock Turtle stopped to continue wailing about what he had lost during his lifetime. Oh how he missed being a turtle!

"Not _your _history," the Dodo remarked, attempting to place a wing on his head in agitation. "The history of Underland." Here, the Dodo gave Alice an apologetic look as the Mock Turtle was clearly very mad and troubled. However, Alice was not bothered by the Mock Turtle's wailing...yet.

"Well...if you say so. Sit down child and listen to all that I have to say," the Mock Turtle instructed. Alice gazed around the area for a chair of some sort. When she could not find one within range, she ultimately found a seat on the floor, a good distance away from the small pool of tears. She felt as though she were a child listening to a story rather than learning a country's history due to her new position on the floor.

"And now Alice, I must leave," the Dodo stated once he could see that Alice was settled. Alice merely nodded before he left to search for something that would hopefully bring back Alice's memories.

"Now, where do we begin?" the Mock Turtle inquired after the Dodo had departed, mostly to himself, trying desperately to fight back more incoming tears.

"Why don't we start with the Oraculum?" Alice suggested, feeling as though that was the most important thing to be learned given the current circumstances. She only hoped the Mock Turtle did not ask her why she had chosen such a subject as Alice was not entirely sure whether or not the Mock Turtle was aware of the White Queen's disappearance. Considering the Mock Turtle had trouble containing his emotions, Alice did not plan on revealing any such information.

"Oh the Oraculum!" the Mock Turtle cried. "It is such a terrible thing at times: it was how I found out one day I would no longer be a turtle!" And here, the Mock Turtle began to sob uncontrollably.

"There, there it's all right," Alice found herself saying in an effort to comfort the once-turtle. However, this did little and Alice was forced to wait patiently for the Mock Turtle to somewhat compose himself.

"The Oraculum...tells the events of everyday...but can change depending on the decisions citizens make..." the Mock Turtle eventually managed to say through some sniffling. "Which is why everyday has its own name. Shunder was the first morning the sun rose in Underland. Then there's Keltikidik, the day that celebrated the White Queen: everyone wore only white, drank only milk, and could only tell white lies."

"Tarrant mentioned something about Tearty day where everyone drinks tea all day long. Is there a special event everyday?" Alice inquired.

"No, not everyday. Why, on Gleb the sky rained fish for no apparent reason. It's not always a planned occasion," the Mock Turtle explained. "Oh Gleb day! Some of my friends were forced to see their kin falling from the sky for no apparent reason," the Mock Turtle added, beginning to sob. This time, Alice traveled within her own thoughts as the Mock Turtle cried for a bit.

"But if the Oraculum tells everything that is going to happen, no one would be learning anything through the decisions they're making," Alice pointed out. After all, seeing the outcomes of decisions is how people learn lessons. If they were relying on an Oraculum, then they weren't really learning anything at all.

"I suppose so..." the Mock Turtle replied. "Let's move on," he added as though he had become uninterested in the current subject and was ready to move on to something new which was odd since normally someone else had to move the conversation along for the Mock Turtle rather than him being the one to do it. "What else shall we discuss?"

"What is the history of the Red Queen taking control of Underland?" Alice inquired. "I don't believe I've ever heard the full story even though I was involved in the final battle."

"Well...let's see. On Faldinal Day, Absolem—you know Absolem?" the Mock Turtle inquired.

"Yes, I remember him," Alice replied. She did not dare to mention he had become a butterfly for fear the Mock Turtle would begin to cry once more.

"Faldinal Day is the day Absolem ordered the forging of the Vorpal Sword. Then there's Harunvendush Day..." the Mock Turtle forced himself to suppress more sobs at the mention of Harunvendush Day. Such a gloomy day it was! "Then Shatterky was when the White Queen was banished followed by Fustilug where the Red Queen enslaved animals working in her palace and forced them to become furniture and such. I am so lucky to have escaped to Marmoreal!" The Mock Turtle sobbed a little bit.

"And what are the days in which I was here?" Alice inquired, no longer becoming interested in the subject at hand. The names were dreadfully confusing yet oddly she felt the need to ask about more names. Perhaps one would click.

"Well...there's Gribling Day, the day you returned to Underland. Quillian was the day after you returned. And then there's Frabjous Day, the day you defeated the Jabberwock." Alice recalled the constant mentioning of Frabjous Day. How could she forget it when everyone was practically shoving the day down her throat?

"What about the days after Quillian but before Frabjous Day? I was here for five days I believe," Alice inquired, having to think about it for a moment.

"I can't remember..." the Mock Turtle replied. "Let's talk about something else."

"What does Underland look like?" Alice inquired. It seemed rather odd that through all the traveling she had done, she had no idea what this mysterious country looked like.

"A map of Underland is right over there," the Mock Turtle answered, pointing to one of the maps. Alice gazed over the picture of Underland's layout. It took her a few moments to locate where they were: the large picture of a castle in the lower right near the label "Marmoreal". Her eyes attempted to travel backwards in hopes of retracing her steps however they ended up becoming distracted by a sliver of land that appeared to be separated by mountains entitled "Outland". Was that not where Stayne had escaped from?

"What sort of place is Outland?" Alice asked as she continued to stare at that particular region. Hearing her question, the Mock Turtle slowly began to cry.

"The Outlands are so rich in culture!" he exclaimed. "Oh there are so many good things about that place: ancient stories and languages. Why, the Outlands' language, Outlandish, was used as a code amongst the Underland Underground Resistance. Downal wyth Bluddy Behg Hid!" he continued wildly, nearly falling to the floor at his last statement as tears streamed down his eyes. Alice found it odd to place someone so dangerous in a place so "rich in culture".

"What sort of stories are from there?" Alice pressed, wondering if there were any useful stories.

"The only one I am aware of is the one describing your victory on Frabjous Day. Unfortunately, I wasn't born there so I don't know enough about it. But if you ask anyone from Witzend, they're sure to know a great deal." Alice gazed back at the map as an aid to locate Witzend. Not surprisingly, it was located next to the Outlands. "Serene Chessur is from there along with Thackery the cook (who happens to make a very delicious soup but whenever I inquire as to what it is made of, no one tells me), and Tarrant Hightop. Though, anyone from the resistance can speak Outlandish." A spark filled Alice's mind upon learning a good deal of her friends could tell her about the stories of the Outlands and almost everyone she knew could probably speak Outlandish.

"Can you speak it?" Alice asked.

"Of course I can," the Mock Turtle stated proudly, his tears drying away.

"Can you teach me?" Alice further inquired.

"I can try to. It's very difficult and you certainly won't learn it all in one session," the Mock Turtle explained. He then walked over towards a desk with various books piling about. The Mock Turtle was forced to hold in his tears as much as possible until he was able to locate the necessary book. Once he had found it, he brought it to Alice for her to examine. "We'll start here."

And so the day progressed with lessons on Outlandish. However, there were many interruptions due to the Mock Turtle's sobbing and the occasional diversion of other important subjects. Alice found Outlandish nearly going in one ear and out the other. As the Mock Turtle had said, there simply was not enough time to learn all of the language. Not to mention, the language appeared to be complete nonsense with hardly any patterns (or at the very least, Alice could not figure out the patterns). It came to the point where Alice was wondering if anyone would rescue her from these lessons or if the Mock Turtle would finally announce the day's teachings were over.

Finally, Alice heard the doors open and immediately turned around to find Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum walking in with bowls of soup.

"We're 'ere to bring Alice some supper," one of the Tweedles, the one on the right, announced.

"There's some 'ere for you too," the other finished, motioning to the Mock Turtle.

"Don't give 'em 'hat," the first Tweedle whispered to the other. "Do you know what's in 'hat?" He quickly looked at Alice and the Mock Turtle to see if they had heard. However, they were merely staring at the two, wondering just what was going on.

"Why 'ot?" the other inquired.

"It's 'ock Turtle soup you twit," the first Tweedle replied harshly. It was not long before the two twins were beginning to direct small jabs at one another, spilling bits of the soup on the floor.

"Thank you," Alice remarked, hoping to get the two's attention before her dinner was completely on the floor. Luckily, they immediately stopped and brought the soup to both Alice and the Mock Turtle.

"Oh yeah and they 'aid you could stop your lessons once you finish eatin'," the Tweedle on the right stated. Alice was glad to hear this as she took a sip of her soup. She had never tasted anything like this before and she found it to be quite delicious.

"And we just wanted to say thank you for lettin' us come wit' you tomorrow," the other Tweedle said, trying to be careful not to mention anything important in front of the Mock Turtle. However, the Mock Turtle was much too busy sobbing into his soup.

" Yeah. No one really takes us seriously," the first Tweedle mentioned. It seemed no one acknowledged them as adults despite their contributions to Underland. What must they do to prove themselves?

"You're welcome," Alice replied.

"Well, we 'ave to go help prepare. Goodbye Alice," the other Tweedle stated, leaving Alice alone with the Mock Turtle to eat while the two went to continue preparing.

Once Alice finished her supper of Mock Turtle soup, she parted ways with her temporary teacher and proceeded to find Tarrant. Although she had only been in Underland for a short amount of time, she still felt closest to Tarrant for some reason. There was something comforting about his presence, something she could not quite place.

However, rather than locating Tarrant, Alice managed to find herself in a corridor that seemed oddly familiar. Becoming side-tracked, Alice drifted down a few familiar halls and towards the location of a balcony. It was not just any balcony; it was _the _balcony, the one from her dreams or, rather, her memories. Nostalgia swept over her as her hands lightly rested on the ledge overlooking the Underland scenery. While she was a little surprised to find it was already dark outside, it only added to the memory locked deep inside her. She allowed her mind to wonder off as if it were attempting to find the key to the missing memories.

"There you are Alice," a voice from behind startled her. She turned to find Nivens hopping towards her. "I've been looking for you. The preparations are nearly complete: we should be able to depart tomorrow," he informed, now sitting next to her, looking as though he were about to quiver. Alice merely nodded as she wasn't entirely sure what to say. "I hope your lessons went well."

"They were interesting," Alice answered. Nivens shifted a bit uneasily however Alice had a feeling it was not the lessons that were troubling him. "What's wrong Nivens?" Alice inquired.

"It's—it's just—I don't know why I bothered volunteering. When it was decided I was to go and search for you last time…I didn't even want to go," he confessed, his paws once again being pressed against one another as though he was nervous to even admit it.

"Why?" Alice inquired gently.

"I—I—I was afraid," Nivens added sadly, his beady eyes looking away from her as though ashamed to admit such a thing.

"You are rather squeamish." Alice admitted, recalling him fainting at one point, causing Nivens' ears to droop slightly. "But you know something? The fact you volunteered despite your fear shows you have true courage Nivens."

"You think so?" Nivens inquired, perking up a bit at the hopeful evaluation.

"I know so," Alice replied confidently, smiling. Nivens did not say anything right away; instead, he tried to soak in what Alice was telling him. He, Nivens McTwisp, possessed true courage? It seemed like a silly idea yet for some reason he could not help but to believe Alice.

"Thank you Alice," he said finally.

"You're welcome Nivens," Alice replied, causing Nivens to smile as he now had more confidence inside him. He then took out his pocket watch from inside his coat. His eyes widened at the sight of the time.

"Oh dear, it's much later than I thought it was," Nivens said as he placed his watch in back within his coat pocket. "I must be going now Alice or I'll be terribly late."

"I understand," Alice replied. Before Alice had anytime to ask Nivens where Tarrant might be, the White Rabbit was gone. She stood there for a moment, not entirely sure what she should do. Should she wait here or search for Tarrant? Nivens had said they were still preparing so perhaps Tarrant was still busy. Alice sighed before turning towards the Underland scenery again. It felt nice she was able to help Nivens and the Tweedles. Yet, it was also rather frightening she possessed so much influence on people who were jumbled memories to her. The country of Underland appeared to depend on her with the Oraculum and the White Queen gone. What would happen to this place once she left? Or, rather, _if _she left.

"They've got to learn not to depend on one person or thing," Alice thought. "Besides, I can't stay here; I'm supposed to be in China." China was beginning to seem like the faint, unreal land now. However, it was a place she must return to. She still had things to do in her own world and family that was waiting for her. Plus, who would watch her dear sister's chauvinistic husband? And who would make sure her father's company was living up to her father's high expectations of endless possibilities? "No, I can't stay here."

Yet, the thoughts of leaving Underland caused Alice to feel uneasy as well, as though she were meant to be here. And, for some reason, she felt as though that missing piece inside of her was closer than ever before.

**OoOoOo**

"I thought I'd find you here," Tarrant called from behind her after all the preparations had been made. By this time, it was very late at night to the point where a part of him was surprised Alice had not gone off to bed and instead chose to remain outside. Within seconds, he was beside her along the balcony. The sense of nostalgia was quickly filling Alice once more; however, she did not know why. They did not say anything for some time as though words were unnecessary as they both gazed out at the scenery.

"You want to hear a funny story?" Tarrant inquired. "It was at this very balcony where you told me all of this was nothing but your dream," he said, pushing down on the balcony as he mentioned it. "And once you woke up, I'd disappear. But see, you never considered that perhaps this is _my _dream and when _I _wake up you'll go out. Bang! Like a candle." Alice could not help but to laugh at his story and his logic.

"I'm sorry I thought you were a dream," she responded once her laughing had ceased. She must have been rather rude, accusing him of being nothing but a dream.

"It's alright," Tarrant replied, the event now being long in the past. "...Alice?" he inquired, his voice softer than before.

"Yes?"

"Do you remember what I told you just before you left Underland?" he asked hopefully. Alice shook her head in dismay: there were still no memories of Tarrant in her mind for some reason. "I see..." he replied, a hint of disappointment in his voice. There was a brief moment of silence between the two and Alice was surprised Tarrant's jacket did not change color. "Well hopefully now you will." With this, he raised a bottle of foreign liquid and gave it a jingle, a smile forming on his lips. Alice gazed at the mysterious potion with fascination before gingerly taking it from him. This was it, the key to her memories. She slowly opened the bottle as if afraid she would break the glass. Without hesitation, Alice took a sip.

A rush of images encompassed her mind within the blink of an eye yet it felt like an eternity. But suddenly everything was clear. "It was you...all this time..." were the first thoughts that occurred to Alice as memories continued to fly pass her vision. The empty balcony, the empty conversations, the empty feelings that went with those memories, all were now complete. Memories were filled and others were added including the very last thing that had been said to her before departing Underland. "Fairfarren Alice." The missing piece she had been searching for had been found. And the one who filled all the emptiness was now standing directly in front of her, worrying as to whether or not the potion had worked and if she was all right.

"Tarrant..."

* * *

_All those days the Mock Turtle is talking about come from the Visual Guide. I swear, I made sure EVERY single one was mentioned. There is more Outlandish to come but I wanted to get the days out of the way because well...how the heck would you start a conversation involving Gleb day? Really..._

_The Mock Turtle's personality is pretty close to the book since the original script did just mention him and did not have him as a character. I believe some of the dialogue he says and the dialogue about him is from the book as well. For instance, "it's the thing Mock Turtle soup is made of" is in the book...I'm almost positive. _

_Chessur, Thackery, and Tarrant are from Witzend. It's true. I swear. _

_I never liked the idea of the Oraculum and you can clearly see that in this chapter. Also, the Mock Turtle wanting to move the conversation to a different topic is exactly when plot holes come into play in the movie/guide. They never mention what the other days are called that Alice is there. And I wasn't going to make up names. _

_The character arcs of the Tweedles and Nivens are of my own invention based on what I noticed in the movie since the visual guide doesn't really give them a potential arc to go through. And I want as many characters are possible to have their own little arcs. So these are just introducing their arcs..._

_Tarrant's remark about Alice going out like a candle is from the book. _

_Again, the movie uses made up words but never gives a definition to them. He says "Fairfarren" to her but what does it mean? I want an EXACT translation when those two are talking to one another. Explain movie, explain! _

_Woot, Alice got her memories back =D.  
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	8. She Took Her Vorpal Sword in Hand

_Hello everyone. All I can say is, finally! Jeez, I'm so sorry I haven't updated in a while. But, my goodness, I was bitten by some SERIOUS bugs recently (figuratively speaking). First, I bitten by the Full Metal Alchemist bug because the series is coming to an end and I wanted to read all of it before the ending came out. Then, I was bitten by the Kenshin bug again so I've kind of sort of been watching the anime. And THEN I was bitten by the LOST bug. Damn the LOST bug. The finale actually made me want to watch the series even though I know none of the questions that I have will be answered including that mysterious polar bear that threw me off the show at the very beginning. Yes, I did not watch LOST because I failed to accept the fact that a polar bear was in the middle of a tropical island. But that was before the other weird crap started happening in the show..._

_At least the dog lived in the end is all I can say (kind of sort of...)_

_Anyway, here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy. It's nice and long for you all. Please review. They will heal the serious bug bites I've gotten and force me to work on this story more XD.  
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**She Took Her Vorpal Sword In Hand**

"Tarrant..." Alice repeated as her mind was processing the memories that had flown into her. Her arms instinctively wrapped around him tightly, warmth filling her entire body. Through his jacket she could hear his heart beating rapidly out of excitement. She sighed heavily out of relief, inhaling the smell of tea and crumpets.

"Alice," he replied softly as her arms were wrapped around him, relieved the potion had worked and now he was once again remembered. He embraced her warmly, a hug that had been long overdue.

"I'm so sorry Tarrant," Alice remarked, fully ashamed she had forgotten someone so important to her. How could she have forgotten Tarrant who had been the only one who believed in her throughout, who had done everything to protect her against the Jabberwock even when it was against the rules? The mere thought of it all nearly brought tears to her eyes.

"It's all right. It wasn't your fault," Tarrant replied reassuringly, not wanting Alice to blame herself. The two continued to hold onto one another, finding enough comfort in this simple exchange.

While the two embraced one another with Alice possessing full memories of her beloved friend Tarrant, darker events were occurring deep within the Red Queen's palace located in Salazen Grum. The once animal slaves of the Red Queen were long gone leaving the once luscious red palace deserted. However, only a few select citizens of Underland knew very well Salazen Grum was not entirely empty but rather two lone citizens remained inside: one being none other than the White Queen and the other the thought-to-be-captive Stayne.

The White Queen reluctantly held a knife in her hand, trembling as the pewter weapon touched her skin. She wanted nothing more than to drop it however doing so would be utterly dangerous as Stayne loomed over her as his sick game fell into play. With a small gesture of his hand, a tiny gray mouse struggled for freedom, its tail trapped between Stayne's fingers. Mirana watched the poor mouse carefully, wondering just what Stayne was planning to do.

"Let's put your vows to the test," Stayne finally said coolly after forcing Mirana to witness the mouse's futile efforts of escape. "You can either cut my hand to free the mouse or you can watch the mouse die." Although the mouse was incapable of speaking, it was clear through its beady eyes the creature was absolutely terrified of the man holding onto him.

However, Mirana did nothing at first. Perhaps he was merely bluffing, waiting for her to break her vow not to harm a single creature when, in reality, he had no intention of hurting the creature at all. It would be foolish of her to act quickly even if it may lead to the mouse's pain.

"Isn't that just as awful as breaking the vow?" Mirana wondered to herself. If she let Stayne hurt the mouse just to prove he was being serious, she would not be protecting a citizen of Underland. And that was her duty as a queen. It seemed as though there was no way to win in this situation. "Which is exactly what Stayne wants. He wants to drive me over the edge."

However, before Mirana could make up her mind as to what course of action to take, Stayne was already at work. Slowly, the palm of his hand began to close, trapping the mouse. Frantically, the mouse attempted to scurry away from the fingers that were beginning to come down upon it; however, it was useless to do so as his tail was still hopelessly trapped. A small cry escaped from the mouse even though it had not yet experienced any pain.

That was enough to convince Mirana. Awkwardly, the blade moved forward, piercing Stayne's skin. He immediately dropped the mouse and it scurried across the floor. Blood dripped from his glove but he only smiled at this: a sinister smile, a smile of victory.

The knife quickly fell to the ground from Mirana's trembling hands. Her lips were on the verge of quivering but she tried her best to prevent this from happening. Her legs wobbled a bit however this was luckily hidden under her white dress.

"Now we've begun," was all Stayne said as Mirana could not shield the look of terror present in her eyes.

**OoOoOoO**

Now having her memories regained, Alice walked across the white floor, her eyes focused on a single object just across the room. The White Knight's armor glistened in the bright room but Alice was focusing on something else: the Vorpal Sword. Without hesitation, Alice carefully removed the Vorpal Sword from its proper place and quickly left the room with it in hand.

Once she had taken her Vorpal Sword in hand, Alice met with the others in front of the White Queen's palace. Everyone was readily equipped with their weapons in hand: Tarrant with his broad sword, the twins with short swords (which were not made out of wood this time), Mallymkun with her hatpin, and even Nivens had a dagger in his hands. However, there was someone clearly missing from the group.

"Where is Thackery?" Alice inquired as she searched for the mad hare, but there were no teacups being thrown in sight. The rest of the group looked amongst one another, confusion upon their faces.

"Thackery isn't coming," Nivens stated, confusion still present in his voice.

"Why not?" Alice questioned, now the one confused.

"We thought it would be best if he didn't come," Tarrant replied, his voice calm despite the fact he knew she could not understand the reasoning behind their decision. Alice frowned upon Tarrant's vague answer.

"He should be here," Alice could not help but to say. "He doesn't need to fight, he can be our chef," she added as a sort of compromise thinking perhaps the issue had to due with Thackery's possible inability to fight. However, there were flaws in that analysis as Thackery was clearly capable of self defense.

Tarrant and Mallymkun gazed at one another warily before they both nodded to one another as if coming to an agreement.

"I'll go get him," Mallymkun finally said as she scurried past Alice in order to get into the palace and retrieve Thackery. It was while Tarrant was watching her go that he noticed a familiar weapon at Alice's side. His nose twitched a little at the sight of it.

"Alice, is that the Vorpal Sword?" he inquired. Alice nodded warily. Judging from Tarrant's tone, it did not seem like a good thing that she was carrying the Vorpal Sword. "You shouldn't use it."

"Why?" Alice questioned.

"Because it doesn't work," Tarrant replied. Alice took the sword and swung it down upon a nearby rock a good distance from everyone to see if Tarrant was speaking the truth. However, it appeared to work just fine to her as it came into contact with the rock. She looked back up at Tarrant to see if he offered any explanation. But Tarrant said nothing as he became confused. He had briefly mentioned to Alice in the Red Queen's palace that the Vorpal Sword could not be used for anything other than slaying the Jabberwock. Yet, why was it functioning against a rock? There simply had to be an explanation. But that would have to wait for now.

**OoOoOo**

The party had recently exited the Tugley Wood and was now making its way across Crims to the Red Queen's fortress. There had been little talk within the Tugley Wood as the terrain had proven to be a bit difficult with so many of them traveling together. However, now that they were all in a more open terrain, they relaxed a little.

"By the way, who is supposed to be following us?" Alice inquired as she had not seen any sign of someone following them at all while in the Tugley Wood. Then again, perhaps the person was much farther back, so far she would unable to see him or her.

"Look up," Tarrant instructed, offering little body language as though Stayne may be watching the party as they spoke. Alice did as instructed and looked up at the sky briefly. Other than the birds flying over, she could not see anything unusual. "Did you see them?" Tarrant inquired, leaving Alice confused.

"See what?" Alice inquired.

"Gryphons," the Tweedles said as they had taken a glimpse at the sky as well. At the mention of gryphons, Thackery threw a teacup at the sky as though to take them down with his teacup. However, all he accomplished was nearly hitting Nivens with the china.

"The gryphons are following us," Mallymkun explained.

"They're perfect for the job: they can fly a good distance away from us to avoid suspicion and return whenever they deem necessary," Tarrant added. "Stayne will never suspect them."

"That does seem like a perfect choice," Alice said.

"They can also easily fly into a window at the castle rather than having to follow us in," Nivens thought he ought to add. Alice nodded, it seemed as though their plan would be executed successfully.

"I think a much better decision would be a cat that can disappear and reappear at will," a voice remarked and within moments Chess was appearing directly in front of the party.

"Chess!" Mallymkun exclaimed.

"What are you doin' 'ere?" one of the Tweedles inquired.

"Well when I heard you were all going on a perilous journey, I thought I'd drop by," Chess replied, his body lightly turning as he floated closer towards them.

"So you were sneaking around while we were preparing," Nivens said accusingly.

"You're making me sound like a criminal," Chess replied though he did not show any sign of offense to Niven's comment. He began to purr as he continued to float around. This made Nivens and Mallymkun feel a bit uncomfortable. Of course, Mallymkun did not show her feelings but Nivens' feet were shaking slightly.

"Well you did leave Salazen Grum without checking the looking glass and then you disappear on us," Mallymkun continued.

"And have my body possibly split across all of Underland? That's dangerous," Chess replied coyly. For, since Chess was able to separate his body at will, if he stepped through a looking glass, his body might involuntarily split.

"As long as you plan on staying with us, I don't mind what you did," Tarrant said. Chess' grin widened at Tarrant's approval. His approval only lessened Chess' debt to society just a bit but it still held a great significance in Chess' eyes. He needed to prove his worth to Underland rather than choose to not assist in securing Underland's safety.

"Of course I intended to stay. I wouldn't have followed you otherwise," Chess replied coolly. With that, Chess slowly began to fade away once again.

"The least he could do is remain visible," Nivens remarked once Chess had completely disappeared, slightly irritated as well as frightened.

"I can hear you, you know," Chess' voice replied. Thackery threw a plate in the direction of the noise however it merely fell onto the grass.

"It's better he stays out of sight. This way, Stayne doesn't know he's here," Alice remarked.

"Yes," Tarrant agreed. "Now, we must keep moving or we'll never make it to Bayard's before nightfall."

"We're going to Bayard's?" Alice inquired. Bayard, the one who not only betrayed the group but also assisted them for the sake of his family. Now that his family had been reunited and freed, it made sense Bayard did not remain in Marmoreal but rather led a peaceful life.

"Yes, since we can't reach Salazen Grum in one day on foot," Nivens explained as he hopped forward. He only hoped when they arrived the puppies would not see him as a chew toy. At least Mallymkun could defend herself with a weapon; Nivens barely knew how to use his.

"Don't know how we're supposed to fit in a dog's 'ouse though," one Tweedle said.

"Or 'ow to get in it for that matter," the other Tweedle added. Alice wondered what sort of house Bayard could live in. Luckily, these thoughts distracted her from the fact she was bothered by no one telling her of the plan in detail. She was the one who had come up with the original plan therefore she had every right to know the new one.

**OoOoOo**

The house looked to be about the size of a completely empty carriage. No, perhaps it was a bit larger than that. It looked to be an overly large box only made of wood instead. The roof was a triangular shape to keep rain, snow, etc. from settling on top of the house. Bayard nudged a swinging door (much too small for Alice to fit through) with his nose in order to greet the company standing in front of him. His wife tailed behind him followed by his children.

"Alice, what brings you here?" he questioned, sensing some sort of danger must be occurring judging from their attire and weapons.

"We need a place to stay for the night," Tarrant answered just as Alice was about to speak. Bayard only nodded: it was probably best he did not know the details for the safety of his family. Alice, on the other hand, did not know why Tarrant did not provide any details.

"I don't believe you will all fit but you can sleep out here and we will bring you food," Bayard replied.

"Thank you," Alice concluded.

Even though it was still light outside, the group began to prepare for the evening by setting up camp. Only Nivens and Mallymkun would be able to fit within Bayard's home, however neither chose to remain indoors. Mallymkun refused to leave Tarrant outside and Nivens felt it to be awkward being the only one staying indoors. No one knew where Chess was though they were pretty sure he did not want to spend the entire evening with a family of dogs.

"Alice, draw the Vorpal Sword," Tarrant said suddenly once they had finished gathering wood for a fire that would be created later in the evening. Although it appeared random, Tarrant had had plenty of time to think about the Vorpal Sword issue and he believed he had finally come to a resolution. Puzzled, Alice obeyed. "Get into a fighting position," Tarrant instructed. Once again, Alice obeyed. "Now try swinging as though you were fighting."

From the moment Alice tried to fight an imaginary opponent, something felt wrong. It was true she was no expert in swordsmanship but when she had faced the Jabberwock it had felt as though something was guiding her. That something was no longer present. She had failed to notice it before because she had done too simple a motion. But now, now it was as clear as ever that Alice possessed no skills at all.

Everyone saw how awkward Alice's movements were; they were _too _awkward. Even though Alice was meant to only be a distraction to Stayne, she would never survive long enough for the gryphons to attack. She would be killed within minutes.

"I don't understand," Alice said as she stopped swinging the sword.

"The Vorpal Sword was only meant to slay the Jabberwock," Tarrant said. "It _wanted _to slay the Jabberwock." Alice then recalled Absolem's words from her last visit: "The Vorpal Sword knows what it wants; you are just a vessel" (or something to that effect). The Jabberwock had also called the sword his foe as though it were alive. Could it be possible the guiding force she had felt was the sword's soul? But, if it had a soul, then where was it now? "But its purpose has been fulfilled: it's just a normal sword now."

"Why would Absolem order us to forge a sword that only defeated the Jabberwock and wouldn't work afterwards? Nivens asked, now distressed.

"Who knows? He's mad like the rest of us," Chess commented, still invisible. Although Absolem was wise, he was still mad in his own little way. At the mention of madness, Thackery let out a hysterical laugh.

"It doesn't matter what the reason was," Tarrant said. "What matters now is we've got to teach Alice so she can defend herself. Mallymkun." At the mention of her name, Mallymkun drew her hatpin out. The training had to begin immediately if they were to attack tomorrow.

"Well I suppose it's best if I start out small," Alice could not help but to think. Even though she knew Mallymkun would be a difficult opponent, she could not resist the pun.

Mallymkun wasted no time: she immediately charged Alice with amazing speed. She knew she had to be tough on Alice since Stayne would show no mercy tomorrow. Seeing the attack, Alice awkwardly blocked it. It was odd fighting such a small opponent but then it should make fighting someone as large as Stayne even easier.

"Stang Alice," Tarrant called, trying to help her.

"What?" Alice returned desperately as she frantically kept her guard up while Mallymkun slashed forward.

"To the right," Tarrant said, realizing he had spoken Outlandish. Alice obediently swung to the right. "Orgal," Tarrant instructed. "I mean left, left!" he added frantically. However, his instructions were not helping since he had to translate.

"This isn't working very well," one of the Tweedles pointed out.

"Stop," Tarrant called as he placed his hat on the ground and began to walk towards Alice who was panting even though she had not been fighting for very long. Before her eyes, Tarrant's pants were transforming to a kilt, exposing his mismatched socks. He got behind her, placing his hands overtop of her own. Together they held the Vorpal Sword. Mallymkun did her best to suppress the jealous rage filling her as Tarrant slowly demonstrated a few sword movements. Alice tried her best to concentrate on the way the sword moved, the way it felt in her hands however Tarrant's being so close was distracting her as mysterious floating butterflies filled her stomach. It was only when Tarrant let go that she was able to relax.

"Again," Tarrant instructed and the battle between Mallymkun and Alice resumed. "Orgal," he found himself saying again. However, this time Alice knew what he had meant and quickly swung to the left.

"Ezel!" one of the Tweedles interjected.

"Nunz," the other insisted, confusing Alice.

"Ezel!" the first said again.

"Nunz!" repeated the second.

"Settle down you two and let only Tarrant deliver instructions. You're confusing Alice," Nivens interjected. "Ezel is 'High, go higher, go up'. Nunz is 'wait or 'don't go; not now''." Alice nodded, placed those words into her memory bank and continued to fight Mallymkun.

They practiced well into the night, only taking a break at Brillig (which was around four o'clock from Alice's understanding) and supper. Alice felt her skills increasing yet she did not know if she would be able to take Stayne. Luckily, with everyone involved in the battle, they should not have a problem. But there were other things on Alice's mind besides her encounter with Stayne tomorrow.

"I wonder if they're looking for me," Alice said as she stared into the fire. It was rather late by this point with everyone getting ready for bed. The Tweedles were already sleeping.

"Who?" Tarrant inquired.

"The people I was with on the ship. Hopefully my family won't find out before I go return," Alice stated. She had already been gone for three days: the crew probably assumed she had fallen overboard. The thought upset her, so much so she did not notice Tarrant's unusual expression. It had not yet sunk in that like last time, Alice would have to leave Underland in the end and this disturbed him.

"I wouldn't worry about it. They probably don't even know you're gone," Nivens said.

"What do you mean?" Alice asked.

"Underland is closer to the center of Earth so we have shorter days than those Aboveground," Nivens explained.

"Well, that makes sense I suppose..." Alice said, trying to see if it was logical.

"Don't think about it too much," Chess' voice echoed through the air. Although Alice found this piece of information interesting, it still made Alice worry. Could she even go back knowing all that would be left behind? And if she did go back, could she live with the memories of Underland? Would the White Queen make her drink the Jabberwock's blood again, causing Alice to see this as nothing but a dream? These questions haunted Alice as the rest of the group gradually began to drift to sleep. The only one who remained awake was Tarrant (and possibly Chess). However, he did not disturb her as he was haunted by similar thoughts. Alice now remembered him but would she still choose to return home? Would she leave him again and forget again? How many times must he go through this repeated cycle? It was strange, her leaving the first time when she was very young did not upset him very much since he knew she would return. But now, there was no telling when Alice would leave and come back or if she would come back at all. He did not like that one bit.

Alice sighed, snapping out of her deep thought, realizing almost everyone was asleep. She looked over to Tarrant who was sitting next to her at this point. It was the perfect opportunity to address another issue that had been bothering her a bit.

"Tarrant," Alice called. Tarrant snapped out of his daze and looked at her. "Why did no one tell me the full plan? And why didn't you tell Bayard anything?" Tarrant's eyes shifted slowly back and forth as if he was trying to process the information.

"I'm the only one that knows the full plan Alice," Tarrant said. "There are pieces of the plan that everyone does not know...except Chess. I don't know what he knows."

"Why?" Alice questioned.

"It's to prevent Stayne from finding out the entire plan in case he catches one of us tomorrow and we have to flee," Tarrant said gravely. "You need to know the least because Stayne will probably come after you first."

"But what if you're captured?" Alice inquired. Tarrant gave a small, sad smile.

"He already did his worst to me last time; he won't get me to talk," Tarrant said quietly. Alice did not say anything for a moment. Of course he must have been tortured when he was captured last time. However, even though Alice had heard it from Stayne himself, a part of her could not believe it because Tarrant never looked like he had been tortured. "Stayne is dangerous Alice. He's even more dangerous than the Red Queen. She executes quickly and forces hard labor. But Stayne...he attacks your mind...and body slowly," Tarrant continued quietly yet his tone was stern as well as though urging Alice to pay attention so that she knew just what that man was capable of. Alice stared directly at Tarrant, allowing what he said to fully sink in. "Alice, there's a part of the plan that only you need to know. If something happens to me, you must, under any circumstances, take care of my hat." Alice nodded even though she had yet to fully understand why this was important. But perhaps a part of her was purposely ignoring the significance and instead focusing on something else: she was not going to allow Tarrant to be captured by Stayne again.

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_Isn't Stayne just so peachy? =D The mouse he's holding comes from a reference in the Visual Guide where Mirana is holding a mouse. Poor mouse. Maybe it's a French mouse..._

_Since I couldn't really put the Gryphon with the Mock Turtle, you can assume he's of the characters following Alice and co. _

_I'm not sure if the parts of the Cheshire Cat's body separate from one another (i.e. you can't cut his arm off because he can just split it) but this does happen in the animated Disney movie. And since the executioner kind of cut off Chess' head but he was still alive I'm assuming the same rules apply in Underland XD. _

_I didn't want to give Bayard a big part in the story for two reasons. 1. His family was the only thing driving him forward so it made sense for him to opt out of this journey now that he was with his family and 2. He isn't a character in the original books and I feel like he had way too much screen time considering. I mean, he was meant to "balance out the Cheshire Cat's presence" but really I think that's just stupid because it felt like Bayard was in it more than Chess was. So yeah, he isn't in this much. _

_The Vorpal Sword does have a mind of its own according to Absolem and the Jabberwock and since Tarrant does say the sword is only to be used against the Jabberwock when Alice tried to free him of his chains, it makes sense it doesn't work anymore now that the Jabberwock is dead. _

_Just because Absolem is wise doesn't mean he always has good, sane ideas =p. _

_All the Outlandish words are in the visual guide. There was actually a scene in the original screenplay that features Alice being taught by Tarrant how to fight with Mallymkun as her opponent. This happens in the prison so I decided to sort of add it. I liked the scene when I read it..._

_The 'Underland having quicker days' bit was the only explanation I could come up with as to why days passed by in Underland but no time passed in the Aboveground. And Underland is underground...it's not like a Narnia XD. Though don't ask me how Underland has a sky. _

_Poor Tarrant was tortured =(. He actually gets beaten the crap out of in the original script...I don't know why he magically doesn't have any bruises on him in the actual movie...I guess Johnny Depp's too pretty for that? Oh well, the mind thing kind of works out I suppose XD. The Mad Hatter was in prison in the novels however he was in the White Queen's prison...not the Red Queen's. _

_The end =D.  
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	9. Knave of Hearts

_Hello everyone! Sorry it took so long (again) but well...LOST is taking over life. And it's not that I'm hooked on LOST it's that someone at my local library is attempting to watch all of LOST as well and as such is taking the DVDs out of the library. So it's like I'm playing a game with whoever this person (or persons) is. Currently, I cannot renew season 4 because they have placed season 4 on hold. And I had not even started it when I found out this morning. So I have to go through the entire season before Friday otherwise I have to wait two weeks to continue. Or go on a library hunt for the 4th season. Either way, I feel like my attempting to watch LOST is creating its own drama. I've gone so far as to label this mysterious person(s) as "The Others" simply because now they have resorted to trying to hold the seasons "hostage" as well (which is what I have been doing for the past 4 weeks). _

_Anyway..._

_Here is the next chapter. I hope you like it. I have commentary at the end as always. =D. Reviews are encouraged as well as constructive criticism so enjoy =D.  
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Knave of Hearts**

The castle reeked of darkness as the group stood on the other side of the blood red moat. Heads floated slowly passed, most of their eyes showing signs of terror. Shivers ran up the spines of each group member as the deceased urged them not to continue farther.

Just when Alice felt she was going to be horribly sick, Tarrant lightly squeezed her hand. Her face had turned pale and the last thing Tarrant wanted was for her to be sick or faint before the battle. Alice began to take deep, slow breaths. It was strange, she was able to handle crossing the moat by actually stepping on the deceased before yet now she could not even look at them. Then again, this time she was not desperately trying to save Tarrant.

Nivens was not as lucky as Alice. The sight of severed heads immediately tortured his mind. Everything around him appeared to become distorted as dizziness overtook him. He did not have time to call for help before darkness consumed him.

Thackery was safely hidden behind the Tweedles who were also trying their best not to be consumed by sickness when he heard Nivens fall.

"Man down!" he shrieked hysterically, a laugh escaping him.

"Nivens!" Mallymkun called as she jumped on top of the fallen rabbit. The rest of the group immediately surrounded him and all previous thoughts of sickness faded away as they became concerned for the white rabbit. Nivens slowly opened his eyes, disoriented by what was currently surrounding him.

"Give him some air," Tarrant said as he backed away. Alice remained by Nivens side, gently pouring water in the direction of his mouth while everyone else obeyed Tarrant. Nivens sipped it gradually as he began to slowly sit up. Tarrant briefly gazed back towards the castle and noticed the gate had been lowered. Whether or not it was lowered before they had arrived or after, Tarrant was uncertain as the moat had distracted him. He was certain, however, that Stayne was mostly likely watching them from afar or from the Oraculum, laughing at their "pathetic" situation with Nivens.

After a few minutes, Nivens slowly rose to his feet, trying his best to remain calm and focused. He did not want to jeopardize the situation after all. Once everyone saw Nivens was able to stand, they once again focused on the castle. Alice took a deep breath before stepping forward, being the first to approach the gate. The rest silently followed and the group walked cautiously into the castle grounds.

Everything remained unchanged in the castle yet the emptiness was positively eerie. Thackery's outbursts sent everyone else on the edge. Nivens jumped occasionally due to sounds of the broken glass. The Tweedles were forced to duck on multiple occasions while Mallymkun attempted to calm Thackery down. Alice was beginning to realize why Tarrant and Mallymkun had protested to Thackery's being there but it was too late to take it back. Chess, who was still very much present, was forced to merely watch since he needed to be extra careful now not to be spot.

"Does anyone know where Stayne might be?" Alice asked quietly as they continued to walk along the halls.

"Probably the throne room," Tarrant said. "Especially if his massive plan is to take over Underland." Everyone was silent at Tarrant's comment. Even though it had never been directly addressed, everyone was fully aware Stayne probably _did _want to control Underland or, at least, lead to Underland's destruction.

"We're nearly there," Alice could not help but to say after some time had passed. A pit was forming in the bottom of her stomach at the realization that she would have to fight Stayne soon. Would she be able to win such a battle when losing was not an option?

Suddenly, a piercing cry shrieked throughout the halls. At the sound of the agonizing scream, everyone bolted towards the source as there was no doubt who and where it came from. Within seconds, the chase had turned into a sort of race: a race not many of them wanted to win.

Mallymkun was the first one to reach the door to the throne room. However, she did not have enough time to open the door (which was very difficult for her) before Tarrant arrived. Without hesitation, the doors were thrust open as the rest of the group caught up.

The room was much darker than Alice recalled. It appeared to be larger as well however Alice merely guessed this was because there was no longer any vibrant furniture in the room let alone colors. The only sort of color that appeared boldly in the room was the White Queen's magnificent white dress and the crimson blood that was coloring the floor.

"Stayne!" Alice called sternly as she forced herself forward, sword drawn. A small, unthreatened smile curled on Stayne's lips as he stared at her.

"Alice, I've been expecting you," Stayne replied as though Mirana's deep, hysterical breaths were nothing to be concerned about. "How have you been?" he questioned, his tone suggesting the two had been friends for a very long time and were eager to learn about each other's whereabouts.

"Release her Majesty immediately," Alice commanded firmly, attempting to hold her ground. It was odd but suddenly Alice felt as though it was just the two of them and everyone else around them had vanished. Yet, she knew full well Tarrant was still standing next to her along with the others.

Despite her firm command, Stayne appeared to be ignoring her. "1...2..." he began to say, his face completely calm.

"What are you doing?" Alice inquired, a hint of nervousness present in her voice.

"I'm counting to see how long it takes the gryphons to enter," Stayne replied. At the mention of the gryphons, Alice's eyes widened with fear. She did not have time to hold any other reaction before the gryphons came flying into the room unbeknownst to them that Stayne was already aware of their arrival.

His sword waved majestically through the air as he slashed the gryphons' wings. The gryphons cried out in pain before being forced to fall to the ground as their wings began to bleed. Stayne had no intention of finishing them off for he knew that without their wings, the gryphons would no doubt flee and never even make an attempt to return. They could live for all he cared at the moment: once Mirana had slipped completely into madness more so than even the Mad Hatter himself, Stayne would control everything. And then he would dispose of the gryphons. But for now the only threat he needed to worry about was Alice and her little followers.

As Alice watched Stayne rid of the gryphons, the only thought that could fill her mind was "How did he know?"

"That's a stupid question Alice," she thought to herself. It was obvious how he knew: he must have gazed at the Oraculum and seen the gryphons coming on this very day. That horrible thing known as one of the most sacred objects in all of Underland was really not very helpful. Alice frantically searched around the room. Her eyes fell upon the White Queen who was a complete and utter mess: trembling from head to toe, blood falling along her arms, and a knife gripped tightly in her hand. However, she could not worry about the White Queen just yet. Right now, she must concentrate on Stayne and look for the Oraculum. If they had to retreat, she had to at least grab the Oraculum beforehand.

Nivens was the first one to spot the Oraculum. Unfortunately, it was tucked safely under Stayne's belt. Nivens began to shake all over: someone had to grab the Oraculum that much he knew. Yet, he was possibly too big to grab it from Stayne without being completely destroyed.

"Mallymkun," he managed to say, his voice stuttering as Stayne was now coming towards Alice. "The Oraculum!" he managed to exclaim, pointing his paw frantically at Stayne. Mallymkun looked and saw the Oraculum. Without hesitation, she began to scurry towards the enemy. Fearing for Mallymkun, Nivens quickly followed.

Stayne was too focused on Alice to notice a little mouse and rabbit preparing to come near him. Before he could actually notice, a plate was suddenly being thrown in his direction. Thackery laughed hysterically from behind as he threw a teacup. While this briefly stunned Stayne, it was not enough to completely stop him as he now prepared to swing his sword directly upon Alice.

As soon as it became clear that Stayne was after only Alice, the Tweedles slowly began to back away as they planned to go around the fight and towards the White Queen. However, they had forgotten Thackery was behind them and he nearly hit them with his plate and cup. While this would have been a decent attack to keep Stayne at bay, Thackery was all out of cups and plates to throw. He had spent so much of his resources throwing them on the way to the castle, he had none left for the actual fight.

"I reckon one of us should get 'hackery out of here," Tweedle Dee said. After all, they could not leave Thackery here defenseless with Stayne running around.

"You go, I'll stay," Tweedle Dum replied hastily.

"No, no. You go, I'll stay," Tweedle Dee answered.

"Both of you go!" Tarrant suddenly interjected, having heard their argument. It was not a stern reply but merely an exclamation for their safety. If they were going to argue in the middle of the battle, then they had to leave. While they had managed to not argue during the battle with the Red Queen's forces, this battle was entirely different. There was simply no time to argue during the battle with the Red Queen. But there was time when it came to fighting Stayne, at least, at the moment.

Normally, the Tweedles would either obey Tarrant's orders or continue to argue. However, there was much more riding on this battle than the previous one. The only one who had wanted them to come was Alice and they needed to prove that Alice had been right in her assertion.

"We'll both go and watch 'hackery," Tweedle Dum said. His brother nodded. While the two covered Thackery, leading him along, they began to slowly make their way towards the White Queen.

Tarrant only had a brief second to shout those orders before he helplessly watched as Alice's sword came into contact with Stayne's. It was clear from that first contact that Stayne was the much more powerful force of the two as Alice was barely able to keep the sword in her hand. She managed to pull back enough for Tarrant to come in front of her and deliver a powerful blow against Stayne. Stayne blocked the attack easily and the two's swords clashed once again. Alice took this opportunity to attack Stayne's side. However, Stayne was able to evade this attack.

Just as Alice and Tarrant were about to advance further, Stayne moved back as he realized Mallymkun was climbing up his leg in an attempt to retrieve the Oraculum. Lucky for her, he did not have time to kill her. Instead, he quickly shook her off his leg before coming at Alice and Tarrant again. Mallymkun fell to the floor but was quickly back on her feet.

Before Stayne could attack Alice and Tarrant, the Oraculum nearly flew out from under his belt. Stayne knew it must have been Chess as he swung his sword in the air as quickly as possible. Chess managed to throw the Oraculum towards Mallymkun before getting scratched by Stayne's sword. Blood began to appear in the air and knowing he would be seen by Stayne, Chess was forced to back away from the fight.

The Oraculum landed near Mallymkun. With as much speed as possible, Mallymkun lifted the Oraculum and tossed it near Nivens. After grazing Chess, Stayne moved frantically towards the Oraculum. He did not care who was in his way, even if it meant crushing Mallymkun's foot. Mallymkun screamed in pain as the edge of his boot came down upon her tiny foot.

Upon hearing Mallymkun's cry, Tarrant blocked Stayne from continuing any further as he practically pushed him back with his sword. However, Mallymkun was still in danger as she was now near three sets of feet (for Alice had now come into the picture) and had no possible way of moving to a safe location. Nivens, having seen all this occur, did the only thing he could do: he left the Oraculum and hopped frantically after Mallymkun.

"You've got to get the Oraculum," Mallymkun said as soon as she saw Nivens coming towards her. Nivens, however, simply ignored her as he scooped her up.

"You have to get to safety first," Nivens said, making his way towards the exit.

Meanwhile, in midst of all the chaos currently ensuing, the Tweedles were not making much progress. Thackery was simply too much for them to handle as he tried his best to remain in the main battle. Because of this, they were stuck and unable to get to the White Queen who at this point was completely silent yet her breathing was irregular.

Out of the corner of her eye, Alice could see the predicament the Tweedles were in. However, she and Tarrant were still having trouble fighting Stayne even though there were two of them. He was simply too skilled and he was completely devoted to obtaining the Oraculum once more. Plus, the two of them had absolutely no opening to get to the White Queen. If only at least one of them could get to the White Queen.

Then, as if by some miracle, the unthinkable happened. Tarrant's latest attack had forced Stayne to change position and now Tarrant had a clear path to the White Queen. If she could just hold Stayne off long enough, Tarrant could rescue the White Queen and on the way out, they could snag the Oraculum.

"Tarrant, get the White Queen!" Alice exclaimed as she thrust her sword in the direction of Stayne. Stayne clearly was not expecting an outburst from Alice nor an attack and was forced to fall back a little. However, Alice could see Tarrant was not moving. "Tarrant!" she exclaimed as she continued to go after Stayne.

But Tarrant did not move from his spot. The color under his eyes was quickly beginning to change as his darker self took over. Only Stayne was able to witness this sudden transformation. He was forced to conceal the smirk that was slowly creeping onto his face.

"No!" Tarrant yelled, his voice deep and threatening, so much so Alice jumped at the sound of it as fear filled her. This one yell forced her to lose her concentration, giving Stayne the edge he needed. Alice desperately blocked his attack.

"Tarrant!" Alice called, this time attempting to sooth him rather than order him. Yet, Tarrant was still unmoving as he appeared to be trying to calm himself down. Desperately, Alice looked around: there was no use saving the White Queen or defeating Stayne. But there was one thing she could do before leaving.

Alice threw one last shove at Stayne before making a run for it towards the Oraculum. With her sword ready Alice did the only thing that came to mind: she stabbed the parchment with the Vorpal Sword. She could not be sure but Alice thought that perhaps she felt a little bit of the Vorpal Sword's soul (if it really was its soul) again as if she was completing what the Vorpal Sword desired. But she could not be sure of this as she was forced to concentrate on a pair of boots that were rushing towards her from behind. They were close now and Alice knew very well this was not good.

The moment Alice began to run towards the Oraculum, Stayne was quickly behind her. Tarrant saw this and immediately put his enraged emotions aside, running towards Alice. He saw Alice's sword come into contact with the Oraculum and it appeared to burn instantly. However, because she had stopped, Stayne had gained on her. But he had also gained on her and quickly Tarrant grabbed Alice's arm so she would be out of harm's way. Stayne missed as his sword came down upon the burning Oraculum.

"Retreat!" Tarrant said to the Tweedles as he held onto Alice, guiding her towards the door where they had entered. The Tweedles hurried in their attempt to reach the door. However, they were very far away from the exit. Luckily for them, two gryphons had decided to remain in the room and were now distracting Stayne so the Tweedles and Thackery could make their escape. Those that remained hurried for the exit and left the castle as quickly as they could, not daring to look back.

* * *

_Really, why was Alice not effected by climbing on ACTUAL, DEAD HEADS? Where is the logic behind that? At least in the original script, she vomited. And we all know Nivens would faint at the sight of it all. _

_The battle sequence was VERY difficult to write. So many things were going on, I tried my best to explain all of them successfully. _

_I purposely did not have Stayne give the usual villain's monologue and had his idea more so in his thoughts. _

_And FINALLY the blasted Oraculum is gone! Really, I hated that thing. Do you know how many plot holes that thing creates? It is a writer's nightmare! The Vorpal Sword's "soul" Alice thinks she hears is secretly my desire to destroy it. I'm the little voice saying "get rid of that damn thing". This is partially a joke but...really, a part of that soul is me because that was easily the stupidest part of the story. Thank goodness Underland doesn't have it anymore =p. _

_I've gotten so overly excited about the Oraculum, I don't believe I have any other comments. _

_'s layout is starting to irritated me. On Word, it looks like I have such nice, long paragraphs. But then slap it in and it's like I've got nothing. oh well...  
_


	10. The Outlands Fortress

_Sorry this took so long but here is the chapter! I really don't have much to say...I pretty much forgotten most of what I wanted to say.  
_**

* * *

The Outlands Fortress **

Their feet dragged across the desert as the defeated party traveled away from Salazen Grum, hearts sinking with each passing step. They simply could not face the fact that they had lost against Stayne and the White Queen still remained within his clutches. No one wished to speak, no one dared to speak nor did anyone bother to look ahead but instead concentrated on the ground below. Although no one spoke to one another, each member of the group could not help but to think "what do we do now?".

There was hope, to be sure. Alice had destroyed the Oraculum and now Stayne was completely unaware of their next moves. He also had no knowledge that the group was clearly aware of the opened looking glasses. Yet, despite these advantages, the group could only focus on the negative, their minds refusing to ease. Even Alice could not help but to concentrate on the less rewarding moments of the battle.

"Why didn't he listen to me?" Alice wondered as she dragged her Vorpal Sword across the sand. It had been bothering her from the very beginning. Tarrant had the perfect opportunity to rescue the White Queen and yet he took no action. He was always a man of action in Alice's mind. It was he who took Alice to safety after they had first met, he who stayed behind so Alice could escape the Red Queen despite her protests. And yet, he had done nothing to save the White Queen. Moreover, he had frightened her. While she ought to be used to his sudden outbursts, this time had been different. He had acted like a...like a... "Like a complete and utter madman," Alice thought miserably.

Without realizing it, Alice had instinctively moved away from Tarrant as though she were afraid he may once again turn into that uncontrollable, dark person. However, a part of her wanted to believe that Tarrant had not completely lost it considering he was able to rescue her. But still, they had only been in that mess because he would not listen for some reason unknown to her.

"Do we have a Plan B?" a voice questioned and soon enough Chess was completely visible. He continued to lick his wound however, quite surprisingly, it was nearly healed.

"Not yet," Tarrant answered quietly, his kilt having transformed to his usual pants by this time as if to enhance their defeat. While he tried not to show it, he was still shaken from his "episode" during the fight with Stayne. Only Mallymkun, who sat on his shoulder due to her leg, was able to pick up a hint of fear in his voice, the fear that his darker side may return.

"Well, we've got to think of something," Mallymkun said, her voice rising with each word. "Did you see the White Queen?" Alice cringed at Mallymkun's comment. It was yet another topic she did not particularly wish to address. The blood stained white dress in combination with the White Queen's horrifying expression was enough to send chills up her spine. She had only seen the White Queen in that condition for a moment and yet she could not lift the image out of her mind at the mention of it. What could Stayne have possibly done to that woman? More importantly, whose blood covered her beautiful dress?

"We've got to get her out of there, that much is certain," Nivens was saying. Yet, this was not enough to bring Alice back to the same world her friends were currently residing in. Back to her thoughts she went, to the entire battle she had witnessed against Stayne. Would she be able to save the White Queen during their next encounter? Alice very much doubted this and she convinced herself there could only be one more encounter otherwise the White Queen would be doomed. They may have already doomed her for all Alice knew.

"Can we take a break, it feels like we've been walking for hours," one of the Tweedles complained. Before anyone could agree or disagree with them, they both dropped to the ground, refusing to take "no" for an answer. Alice gazed behind them in order to see how much distance they had covered. The palace looked to be the size of a chess piece; they had managed to travel much farther than she thought. Convinced, Alice sat down along with the Tweedles. Nivens, Chess, and Thackery were quick to follow her example while Tarrant chose to stand for a bit longer as if punishing himself.

"I don't mean to be rude but perhaps we should come up with a decent plan while we're resting," Chess suggested as he floated nearby.

"We have a good amount of time to come up with a plan," Alice said even though she only half believed her words. "Now that the Oraculum is gone, we can easily surprise Stayne."

"What do you mean the Oraculum is gone?" Nivens inquired, a hint of worry present in his voice. Everyone except Tarrant appeared to be equally confused. For, no one had managed to see the Oraculum being destroyed. Nivens, Mallymkun, and Chess had already fled by the time Alice plunged the Vorpal Sword into it and the Tweedles had been too preoccupied with Thackery to even see so much as a flame. The Oraculum's demise had simply happened too quickly for anyone but Alice, Tarrant, Stayne, and perhaps the White Queen to notice.

"I...destroyed it...," Alice replied, now feeling very uncertain of her actions. She had felt so confident when it had happened but now that she saw everyone's reaction to this news, her confidence quickly slipped. Alice desperately looked towards Tarrant but he offered no help as he appeared to be in another place, away from the current conversation.

"You did what?" Mallymkun exclaimed, unable to contain herself.

"This is absolutely terrible!" Nivens added.

"I don't understand what the problem is," Chess chimed in, keeping his voice as cool and collective as possible. However, even he seemed to be slightly worried at this knowledge.

"But-," Alice began, desperately trying to defend herself. The others, however, were in complete chaos as they began to talk amongst themselves and chaos was exactly what Thackery needed as an excuse to slip into more fits of laughter. Alice felt overwhelmed and Tarrant's absence in the ordeal did not help. What on earth was she to do? Tarrant always stood by her and ultimately convinced the others to believe in her. Yet, now that he was silent, she did not know what she should do. Perhaps it was a mistake to destroy the Oraculum.

"No," Alice said to herself firmly. "It wasn't a mistake. I'm sure of it." She had felt the Vorpal Sword's will to destroy it; she was certain that was what it had wanted her to do. Of course, by this time she was merely convincing herself such facts were true as a way to regain her confidence and there is no actual method of proving Alice's statements correct. Alice stood up once again and looked at each member of the group. "The Oraculum needed to be destroyed," she said firmly, causing everyone to remain silent. "Don't you see? The Oraculum was telling you what would happen if you continued your current course of action. And it changed based on the decisions everyone made. That's not how life works in my world. In my world, you have to make decisions without knowing all the consequences."

"This isn't your world Alice," Nivens said quietly. For, who knew what sort of consequences would befall Underland now that the Oraculum had been destroyed, now that the rules of the world had been altered.

"No, it's not," Alice admitted. "But if people in my world can do it, you can too. You can make your own decisions for Underland. And you're free to make those choices without worrying someone else might know exactly what you are going to do."

"Alice is right," Tarrant interjected, having heard a majority of her reasoning. "We can take care of Underland ourselves. And no one like Stayne can ever have the upper hand that just defeated us ever again."

While Tarrant wasn't particularly fond of the Oraculum being destroyed, Alice believed they could handle things on their own without the Oraculum. And, in a way, he believed it too. He had waited a long time for Alice to return to defeat the Jabberwock. Yet, when she finally arrived, he never expected her to lose her muchness, sneak into Iracebeth's palace for him rather than the Vorpal Sword, and refuse to be their champion against the Red Queen. Even after all this, Alice still managed to become their champion. She was right (he now convinced himself): they didn't need to know their destinies; they just needed to believe their destinies existed and they would all be fulfilled in the end.

A part of Tarrant wished he could share these new feelings with everyone but by the time the thoughts had passed through him, everyone else was convinced that all would be well in the end even if the Oraculum was destroyed. No matter, he reasoned, perhaps they would figure it out for themselves or perhaps they had already done so.

Rather than continuing to worry about the Oraculum, the group discussed what their next move would be. Everyone was throwing out ideas (even Thackery); some were completely idiotic, others were decent, and a few were rather good plans. Tarrant, however, felt it difficult to concentrate. He tried to keep his mind in a decent place so that his clothes would not change for all to see. Yet, Tarrant did not know that the colors of his clothes would not change no matter what Tarrant did for the simple reason that Tarrant was feeling too many emotions at once. His clothes did not know which colors to change to. He felt disappointed, disappointed that he had allowed the darker half of himself to be released at such a critical moment. He felt angry that Alice had even suggested he leave her behind. He felt sad because he knew there was no way for Alice to know what had happened to him in the past. He would have liked nothing more than to merely explain to her his feelings yet he did not have the heart to share such horrible, painstaking memories.

"Some of these plans are promising but what are we going to do about the White Queen?" Alice was inquiring. "We should have someone attempt to rescue her at the same time."

"But that didn't work last time," Mallymkun protested.

"But what if this plan doesn't work? Then we would have fought Stayne for nothing," Alice countered. The group was silent for a moment and pondered their current dilemma.

"Even if we did go to her during the battle, there's no telling how she will respond. Who knows what Stayne did to her," Tarrant managed to interject despite the current thoughts filling his head. While he had been able to withstand most of Stayne's abuse there was no telling how Mirana responded. He was already very mad to begin with while she was only slightly mad.

"There must be someone who can get through to her," Alice replied.

"How about her sister?" one of the Tweedles suggested rather suddenly.

"Iracebeth?" Nivens questioned, confused as to why anyone would suggest receiving her help and thinking perhaps he did not understand the suggestion.

"Yeah, that's the one," the other Tweedle replied. While many were thinking this was a very ridiculous idea, their faces remained blank as if they were seriously considering the Tweedles' suggestion.

"If I was going over the deep end, I'd want someone I care about to be there," the first Tweedle added.

"But the White Queen and the Red Queen don't exactly see eye to eye," Chess interjected coolly.

"Just because they argue all the time...," one Tweedle began.

"...doesn't mean they don't care about one another," the other Tweedle finished. After all, if anyone knew about sibling relationships, it was the Tweedles. Although they bickered constantly, sometimes at inopportune times such as during the battle with Stayne, they still cared for one another deeply. Those in the group that had siblings swayed their opinions a bit but were still not completely convinced. Iracabeth was the Red Queen after all which must have been entirely different than having a _normal _sibling.

"Maybe we should go to the Red Queen anyway," Alice said after some time. "She may be able to help with Stayne. Or give us useful information."

"_If _she helps us," Nivens pointed out.

"It can't hurt to try...," Mallymkun added. While she normally would protest such an action, traveling to the Outlands would give her more time to heal as now she was nearly useless in battle.

"We can use a looking glass in the Outlands Fortress as well," Chess added even though he had no intention of using the dreadful method of transportation. Since the majority of the group had clearly been more in favor of at least paying a visit to the former queen of Underland, it was decided this would be the best course of action for now.

**OoOoOo**

The Outland Fortress was an unwelcoming place. Unlike the Red Queen's palace which had shown signs of once being a lavish place, the fortress showed no such signs. Even though the guards were clearly that of the White Queens, the group could not help but to be intimidated by them. Their helmets gave the appearance that none of the soldiers possessed faces nor unique personalities. They were simply there to do the job assigned to them.

Alice was not entirely sure why the fortress was so large when only Iracebeth and Stayne were meant to be contained there. She thought perhaps the fortress was meant to contain any persons who were believed to be a serious threat to Underland however she did not want to linger on that subject.

Iracebeth's current room was quite small. She was covered in more chains than usual and the absence of furniture suggested she was being punished for Stayne's actions. However, she surprisingly did not seem to mind; her expression was elegant as ever as though she expected her guests the entire time.

"Iracebeth," Alice said calmly upon facing the Red Queen.

"Stayne giving you trouble is he?" Iracebeth replied. The group exchanged wary glances, embarrassed that the fight had come to this. "Before I decide whether or not to help you, I would like some tarts." Everyone looked at one another, confused by this odd request. "Now!" she shouted as though she were still the queen of Underland.

"Downal wyth Bluddy Behg Hid," the citizens of Underland growled instinctively at her command. While they needed her help, they would not allow her control. Iracebeth was taken aback by this but managed to regain composure.

"Ask the guard to get some tarts," Alice said after the small exchange, her eyes remaining focused on Iracebeth. Upon Alice's orders, the request was passed along to provide Iracebeth with the tarts she desired. "Why do you want tarts?" Alice asked curiously immediately after she had requested them.

"Because as soon as Stayne left, they've refused to give me any decent food, that's why," Iracebeth replied tartly.

"Prisoners don't deserve decent food," Tarrant interjected. Iracebeth winced at his comment, slightly hurt that she was considered a prisoner.

"Will you help us, Iracebeth?" Alice threw in even though the tarts had yet to arrive.

"Of course I will," Iracebeth answered impatiently as though it were obvious from the beginning.

"But...why?" Mallymkun could not help but to ask even though it was best to keep the number of people involved in the conversation as little as possible to avoid chaos and confusion.

"Because as much as I hate my sister and as much as I hate all of you, I hate Stayne even more," Iracebeth responded, her voice rising as she reached Stayne's name. "It was _his _fault that all this happened to me!"

"Really, because I could have sworn beheading people and the massacre on Horunvendush Day was your idea," Tarrant interjected once more, his eyes on the verge of becoming darker. While Tarrant felt as though he partially understood Iracebeth, he could not allow her to become the complete victim. It was true her court members purposely uglified themselves for the sake of being accepted by her, merely using her for power. He was sure Stayne was not much different from them. However, that still did not give her the right to completely blame Stayne for Underland's previous state.

"Don't get angry at me Hatter! Stayne was the one who convinced me my husband was in love with my sister, what caused the King's beheading! He made me think he loved me and I listened to him because of that!" Iracebeth shrieked, the words running out of her mouth so quickly it was hard to tell whether or not Iracebeth actually knew what she was saying. Her face became red with anger as though her balloon for a head was about to explode.

"And that's _your _fault for listening to him!" Tarrant growled back. Chess flinched at Tarrant's gesture, recalling Tarrant having done nearly the same thing to him. Alice was quickly realizing the argument was getting out of hand. But neither side could be blamed. Iracebeth was suffering from a broken heart while Tarrant could never completely forgive Iracebeth for what happened to the Hightop Clan. Both were suffering from deep wounds the 'war' had caused.

"Tarrant," Alice said sternly as she grabbed onto his arm in an attempt to bring him out of the current state his mind was in.

"I changed my mind, I refuse to help you!" Iracebeth said while Tarrant began to calm down. Alice's mind went blank. What was she to do now that Iracebeth refused to at least provide information? Could they fight Stayne without her? Alice looked dismayed and she made sure Iracebeth and Tarrant saw this before she left the room.

**OoOoOoO**

Alice stood in one of the halls by herself. The Red Queen was undoubtedly eating her tarts by this time. She wasn't entirely sure where the others were and at this point, she did not care. She did not want to see anyone at the moment.

What had happened to Tarrant? The question kept haunting her mind. Her memories told her he had been so much kinder. Why couldn't she spend time with the old Tarrant, the one who told her perhaps she was in his dream and when he woke up she would go out like a candle? What was upsetting him so?

Unfortunately for Alice's wishes, Tarrant had been searching for Alice after she had left Iracebeth. Like a lost puppy, his eyes desperately searched the halls and yet, there was also a small gesture in his face that suggested a part of him did not want to find her. Mallymkun, who was still on Tarrant's shoulder, pointed Alice out for him. His steps towards Alice were slow as though he did not want her to see him coming.

No matter how quiet Tarrant attempted to be, Alice eventually heard his footsteps. When she came face to face with him, she did not say anything right away. The air felt thicker than usual as she stared at him. A part of her was almost afraid to address the issue. They had never really addressed anything in such a manner before, not like this.

"Why were you so angry before?" Alice questioned. Tarrant's lips closed instantly as though he were a child attempting to lock his mouth shut. He thought for a moment about the best way to answer her question without directly answering it.

"It's best if you don't know Alice," Tarrant said softly. There was no reason for her to know the details of Horunvendush Day.

"Does it have to do with why you didn't rescue the White Queen?" Alice asked as gently as she could possibly allow herself to without sounding forced. A part of her wanted answers desperately but she knew it was best not to press Tarrant for them but instead approach gently.

"Partially," Tarrant answered, his tone a bit more relaxed as he thought he just might get away without directly answering Alice's questions.

"What's she talking about with the White Queen, Tarrant?" Mallymkun inquired. Even though this was clearly a moment between Tarrant and Alice (one Mallymkun was completely and utterly jealous of) she could not help but to wonder just what they were talking about. Not to mention, she didn't mind breaking up the moment.

"It's nothing Mally," Tarrant replied briskly though Mallymkun could tell from his tone of voice that it was really something important.

"Why can't you just tell me what's going on?" Alice inquired of Tarrant, ignoring Mallymkun's comment for the time being. Mallymkun's beady eyes began to show a hint of anger. She did not like being ignored.

"Trust me, Alice," Tarrant replied urgently.

Now Mallymkun was beginning to feel like a child who was watching two adults argue. It was, Mallymkun concluded, absolutely ridiculous. However, she quickly decided that if the two were to part and if Mallymkun was to learn what happened with the White Queen, she had a better chance of finding out from Alice than Tarrant. With this being decided, she slowly (even though she was doing this somewhat quickly from the perspective of a human) climbed down Tarrant.

"Tarrant," Alice said after being silent for a few moments, "please?"

But Tarrant still refused to tell Alice anything. Yet, her plea made him feel as though he _should _tell her. But still, he imagined telling Alice about _that _day was similar to if he were to tell a child a very scary story. And it really isn't very nice to tell a child a scary story when you know they're going to be scared from the beginning. Yet, Alice was not the child he remembered from the old days and perhaps she really could handle all the horrors of that day. But, even still, did he want to put himself through such torment? Having to deal with Stayne's mental games on the subject was enough for any mad man.

This was becoming dreadfully confusing. Tarrant swallowed hard at the thought of it all.

"I need some tea," he concluded. Tea always made everything better and perhaps after a nice cup, his head would be clear. He nodded to Alice to assure her that all would be well. Alice, however, was still very much confused and thought perhaps Tarrant was on the verge of becoming a Thackery. Before Alice could stop him, Tarrant was off to drink some tea.

"What happened with the White Queen," Mallymkun stated after Tarrant had left, knowing that he would be all right in the end. She was not one for shifting the conversation slyly into what she wanted to talk about; if she wanted to speak of something, she just spoke about it.

"What?" Alice inquired, still rather confused by what had just happened.

"You said something about the White Queen," Mallymkun replied. It was then that Alice realized perhaps Mallymkun could help her with figuring out what was wrong with Tarrant especially since Mallymkun was so eager to know about the ordeal with the White Queen.

"After you left, Tarrant had an opening to get to the White Queen while I held off Stayne. I told him to save the White Queen but he didn't listen. He just shouted at me and—"

"You did what?" Mallymkun practically shouted suddenly. With a swift motion, she withdrew her hatpin and stabbed it hard into Alice's foot. Alice was not expecting the blow and cried out in pain, moving her foot away from the mouse.

"What was that for?" Alice inquired.

"I told you not to hurt Tarrant!" Mallymkun exclaimed.

"How did I hurt Tarrant? If anything, I was almost hurt by Stayne!" Alice replied, her foot still hurting and very confused about the whole situation.

"Don't you get it, Alice?" Mallymkun said as she pointed her hatpin up towards her. "Tarrant didn't want to save the White Queen because he didn't want you to get hurt!" She then lowered her hatpin and placed it back at her side.

"I could have held him off long enough," Alice replied defensively.

"Long enough for Tarrant to get the White Queen and then help her escape with you still left behind?" Alice stopped for a moment and realized he was pretty far away from her. Not to mention, he'd have to leave Alice just to get the White Queen to safety. Mallymkun was right. "When I said 'don't hurt Tarrant' I also meant to keep yourself safe." Mallymkun continued to stare at Alice however it was clear that Alice still did not fully understand. "Tarrant loves you Alice and if you get yourself killed, you'll break his heart!"

The words shocked Alice for a moment. Was it really true? That all this was due to...to love? Hadn't she recently become an independent woman who did not need a man just yet? Yet, oddly, she did not loathe the idea of spending time with Tarrant as she had when Hamish proposed to her. She did love Tarrant but she was not entirely sure if she loved Tarrant the way he potentially loved her.

And here she was, wondering her own feelings immediately after hearing this news rather than wondering if what Mallymkun had said was true. But now that she thought back, it almost seemed obvious that it were true. He most definitely felt close to her, that much was certain. She and Mallymun were the only ones who could calm Tarrant down after all.

Mallymkun...

Alice focused on Mallymkun, a certain sadness present in the mouse's eyes. It was almost as if it had pained her to admit that Tarrant loved Alice. And it suddenly occurred to Alice that perhaps Mallymkun had feelings for Tarrant. Now Mallymkun's insistence to be the one to rescue Tarrant and her confrontations with Alice about Tarrant were suddenly making a good deal more sense. Perhaps Mallymkun loved Tarrant...

Before Alice could say anything that was on her mind, Mallymkun was leaving.

"Where are you going?" Alice inquired.

"To fix what you broke," Mallymkun said. Alice was not entirely sure what to say to this and was forced to watch yet another member of the group walk away from her.

"How interesting," Chess' voice echoed from behind her. Alice turned around not surprised to find the cat already becoming visible.

"How long have you been here?" Alice inquired, slightly annoyed that he had been eavesdropping.

"Long enough," Chess replied. "You can relax though; I'm on your side." There was a hint of sarcasm in his voice as though it were ridiculous enough that such drama was occurring.

"That's comforting," Alice responded.

"Isn't it?" his voice rose with this remark, his grin becoming wider as he began to purr. However, his expression became serious shortly after. "I think it would be a lot easier if you knew what happened on Horunvendush Day."

"Is it that bad?" Alice inquired. Chess floated closely to her, no longer purring. A small sigh escaped from him.

"The Hightop Clan was in celebration of the White Queen when the Jabberwock attacked. I left as soon as I saw the White Knight defeated," Chess began. It was something he was not very proud of.

"That was why Tarrant was angry with you when you brought me to the tea party for the first time," Alice said. She recalled Tarrant mentioning "that" day however it had been unclear as to what day he was talking about. Chess nodded solemnly.

"The White Queen was clearly in danger and it was Tarrant who brought her to safety. Or so I found out afterwards..." Chess resumed. "By the time he got back, everything was destroyed."

"So that's why Tarrant was so upset when I told him to save the White Queen!" Alice exclaimed. "I was reminding him of Horunvendush Day..." she added more quietly, feeling guilty now for what she had said. All this time she had thought Tarrant had seen the massacre on Horunvendush Day but, in reality, he had missed it. He was unable to protect anyone he cared about and Chess had the opportunity to help him but fled. Now things were making a lot more sense.

"There was one survivor of the massacre," Chess said. Alice looked up, puzzled now. "Thackery was there too. He saw the whole thing."

"That was why Tarrant and Mallymkun didn't want Thackery to come..." Alice thought. Poor Thackery. There was no doubt his madness was due to whatever he saw on that day. She was embarrassed to say any of this out loud as she was now feeling a bit foolish. Yet, if someone had just told her this from the beginning, she could have saved everyone a lot of trouble.

"So now you know," Chess concluded. "I suggest you use this information wisely." Before Alice had a chance to ask further, Chess was all ready disappearing making this the third Underland citizen to leave her behind. However, she should have expected as much from Chess. Soon, she was alone once more, wondering what she should do next.

**OoOoOoOo**

Alice inhaled deeply before opening the door to Iracebeth's chamber (if it could even be called a chamber). The tarts were nearly gone by this time with only two remaining. Upon entry, Iracebeth gazed towards her, her eyes showing no emotion. Alice reasoned that Iracebeth seemed to have calmed down but this could easily have been wishful thinking.

"Iracebeth," Alice said calmly, managing a small nod as though Iracebeth still held authority over Underland.

"So you've come back alone I see," Iracebeth replied. Alice merely nodded. "Well you had your chance. I won't help you anymore." Her answer sounded definitive but Alice remained hopeful that there was still a chance to convince Iracebeth otherwise.

"I think what Stayne did to you was wrong and you aren't completely at fault," Alice said. Whether or not she actually believed her own words, Alice was not sure.

"Exactly," Iracebeth interjected. "Imagine if that mad Hatter suddenly betrayed you." Alice paused for a moment. She had never really thought of it like that. In a way, Alice did trust Tarrant rather blindly last time and for all she knew, he could have been another Stayne.

Of course, Iracebeth had only been referring to the moment where Alice had managed to calm Tarrant down and had no knowledge of other events between the two. Still, she knew she must have struck some sort of chord due to Alice's expression.

"If you help us save your sister, I will make sure you go free," Alice said knowing it was an offer Iracebeth could not refuse.

"I also want the fat boys to be my personal guards."

"Their names are Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum," Alice replied sharply.

"Yes, of course," Iracebeth remarked though there was a hint of annoyance present in her voice.

"I will make sure they guard you as you try to get to Mirana out. And you will be freed once she is rescued," Alice remarked.

"Very well."

Alice's mind froze for a minute. Had the conversation really gone so smoothly? For some reason, Alice was certain she would be speaking with Iracebeth much longer. Yet, here she was, completely finished with what needed to be done. Satisfied, Alice turned to leave.

"If you don't mind my asking," Alice could not help but to remark before she departed, "you don't seem to be concerned for your sister. Why?"

"Would you be concerned for your sister if she banished you to a place where it was impossible to have any friends?" Iracebeth replied tartly.

"Yes," Alice remarked almost immediately. Iracebeth was surprised by the sudden reply, so much so she did not say anymore. Alice left the former Red Queen to her two remaining tarts.

**OoOoO**

This was the third time Alice had found the unusual trio seated around a table enjoying the simple pleasure of tea. There was only one table rather than the multiple tables crammed together but it still managed to get the job done. The three were as cheery as ever, shouting for no particular reason, asking one another riddles, and sipping large quantities of tea. It was as though Alice had stumbled upon Tearty day all over again and she was very glad of this. However, at the same time, she could not help but to wonder if they should stop consuming so much tea since it appeared as though the tea made them rather madder than usual.

Upon seeing them this happy, Alice wondered if she should intrude upon the gathering. Would her presence send a sour note amongst the group?

Before she could talk herself out of it, Alice sat amongst them.

"No room, no room!" Thackery shouted suddenly. Alice shifted uncomfortably. Perhaps it was not such a good idea to sit down. "You don't have an invitation!" Thackery continued. Just as Alice was about to leave the table feeling rather upset, Thackery burst out into a fit of laughter. The others joined in quickly after.

"You got her good Thackery," Mallymkun said, still laughing as a snort escaped Tarrant. Tarrant's laughter forced Alice to remember why she approached the three in the first place.

"Tarrant," Alice began. Tarrant was still laughing and it took him some time to calm down. "I'm sorry about..." Alice continued once Tarrant had calmed down however she found it difficult to speak about Horunvendush Day. Tarrant frowned a little at her faltering.

"So I take it someone told you about Horunvendush Day," Tarrant said quietly. Alice merely nodded, watching carefully to see if his clothes would change. "Well, what's done is done I suppose," Tarrant added as he sighed.

"There's something else too," Alice added. "I convinced Iracebeth to help us." Tarrant did not say anything for a moment. Normally, there was a good chance of him going into another fit of rage or his clothes changing colors. However, his cup of tea had soothed him enough to prevent either from happening.

"In that case," Tarrant said, "we need to form a plan."

* * *

_Thackery's 'side story' comes from the original script. Just so you know. _


	11. Interlude

**Interlude**

"This is madness!" Thackery shouted at the top of his lungs, throwing teacups, pots, and the like in frustration. If one thought Thackery was bad when he was merely being his mad self, one ought to see him down right angry.

"What's the matter Thackery?" Alice inquired, very confused by his even odder behavior.

"I believe it's this fanfiction that's got Thackery in ruffles," Nivens offered.

"What do you mean?" Alice questioned, somewhat oblivious to the fact that she was (and still is) a fictional character created years ago by a man named Lewis Carroll and later morphed into the being that she was by Linda Woolverton. Poor girl, she still couldn't completely grasp such a mad concept. But it was true, none the less.

"Well, what I mean is Loyal Subject hasn't updated this story in Lord knows how long and Thackery is getting impatient," Nivens replied.

"We're _all _getting impatient. Who stops writing right when we are at a pivotal moment in the story?" Chess questioned.

"Loyal Subject does," Tarrant answered.

"I'm sure she's got a reason for it…" Alice replied, trying to remain positive but really just confused by what was going on.

"Excuses, excuses. Hey, LS, how about instead of writing this useless interlude you write the next chapter?" Mallymkun inquired, waving her hatpin. If the fate of Mallymkun did not rest in Loyal Subject's hands, she would have stabbed Loyal Subject without hesitation.

Loyal Subject did not answer Mallymkun for she was simply too busy wondering who should say what next. Not being able to come up with anything decent and feeling as though this interlude had probably served its purpose by this time, Loyal Subject ended the interlude hoping it had entertained her readers enough to stop them from forming an angry mob outside of her house.

* * *

_In short, yes, I realize this story has not been updated. But, I am extremely busy. Last year, I had a lot more free time. This year, not so much. School projects are absolutely killing me. KILLING ME I TELL YOU! Plus other stuff...like getting ready for an intern and oh yeah, did I mention the projects? Luckily, these projects are supposedly going to be more 'in class' oriented so I will hopefully have more time very soon. I hope you enjoyed this random thing for now though!_


	12. Return For a ReMatch

_Well, I have FINALLY managed to finish the latest chapter of this story. At this point, I realize I probably won't get that many readers since it took me so damn long to upload but I still have to finish it. Why? Because I just HAVE to finish things that I start. There's only one story that I never finished on this site but I did finish writing it; I just stopped uploading it. So yeah, I am finishing this story. To be sure!_

_There were so many problems with these two chapters. For one, I was all excited to write the story back in December/January. Really, I was. Then I looked for the story file and the next chapter (I had started to write the next chapter ahead of this one just because) was practically gone. Seriously, I had at least four pages worth of the next chapter done and I wasn't even close to finishing it. And there were only about two there. So yeah, I was pretty upset and, because of that, I lost the drive to continue this story for a while. I'm still not looking forward to writing the next chapter all over again. _

_Anyway, here's the next chapter. I'll be uploading another one-shot I did featuring American McGee's Alice and hopefully I'll have the next chapter done sometime before the next century. _

_~LS_

_P.S. I hate the way this chapter looks on . It looks so much longer in Word.  
_

**

* * *

**

**Return for a Re-Match**

The halls of Salazen Grum were absolutely silent as the group moved swiftly, each footstep a precise calculation that would ultimately avoid any sounds to be made. Mirana's guards were already surrounding any potential exit for Stayne. A few still remained with the group, quietly searching for any looking glasses to blockade. One by one, the guards stopped in front of a found looking glass, waiting patiently for the right time to break them.

Iracebeth could not move as swiftly as the others so she and the Tweedles were forced to be far behind. Mally suffered the same problem as Iracebeth with her damaged foot but rested on Alice's shoulder. The rest of the group raced forward as quietly as plausible. They desperately search all the rooms, hoping to find Stayne sooner than later.

Finally, the group was face to face with Stayne once more in a large banquet hall. He was surprised momentarily but quickly came to his senses as he drew his sword. With great speed, he charged towards the group, hoping to separate them immediately. However, he was not expecting Thackery to begin throwing teacups in his direction as though they were spinning discs of death. His sword attempted to slash some of the teacups and whatever he could not slash, he gracefully dodged.

While Thackery threw whatever teacups he had left, Chess proceeded to utilize his claws on Stayne. He scratched as quickly as he could, taking note to aim for Stayne's face. However, his scratching could only go so far as Stayne began to swing his sword wildly in order to get Chess away from him.

Chess immediately disappeared as the sword swung about wildly. Just as the cat disappeared and Stayne was able to claim victory on one opponent, Tarrant and Alice were suddenly surrounding the Knave. And this time, they were attacking in unison.

**OoOoOoO**

Upon seeing that the White Queen was not with Stayne, the Tweedles escorted Iracebeth around the castle in hopes of finding the beloved queen of Underland. They desperately continued their search, looking in any room that they may have missed.

"Where gettin' nowhere lookin' like this," Tweedle Dee said after they had searched yet another empty room.

"Where do you suppose he put her?" Tweedle Dum inquired, scratching his head as he tried to think of a place. Unfortunately, no one in the group could really be considered the 'brains' of the operation.

"Stayne wouldn't keep her in a place that wasn't heavily guarded," Iracebeth reasoned. While her intelligence was arguably higher than the Tweedles, the fact that she been unable to recognize "Um" as Alice the last time proved that she was not the sharpest tool in the shed.

"But no one's really here 'cept Stayne," Tweedle Dee said.

"It would 'ave to be a place no one would look for her," Tweedle Dum reasoned.

"There's a lone cell on the far side of the dungeon below," Iracebeth said quickly, wanting to get a move on as the Tweedles spoke slowly through their reasoning. Not to mention, speaking fast made one sound smarter (at least, according to her). "But I'm sure Stayne has the key."

"We can 'et Chess to 'et 'em," Tweedle Dum said and the group was quickly heading to where the battle was occurring.

**OoOoOoO**

"Orgal!" Mallymkun exclaimed on Alice's shoulder. Alice quickly parried to the left and swung the Vorpal Sword. A loud clang rang out as Stayne blocked the attack. However, he was quickly forced back as Tarrant took a swing at him with his broad sword.

This was definitely not good for Stayne. There was more force in his opponents' attacks, more harmony in their movements, and they were trying to corner him. If he were to be cornered now, it would be check mate for him.

But there was still a sliver of hope: the mirror on the far side of the room. If he could just reach it, he would be able to escape. Of course, he'd have to leave the White Queen behind but that was the price to pay. Still, he needed to at least _reach_ the mirror in order to make his escape. Unfortunately, Alice and Tarrant were blocking the way, as if they knew Stayne planned to use it as an escape. Which meant they knew full well about the looking glasses. He needed to be even more on guard than before as now anyone from their party could come through the mirror. But would they risk landing in remote locations? It could take a while before anyone ended up in the right location.

Still, Stayne could not prolong the battle. He knew Alice and Tarrant would be wearing down soon since they lacked the skill he had. He needed to end this quickly and get to the mirror.

**OoOoOoOo**

Nivens nervously twitched as he clutched onto one of the flying Gryphons. He only hoped Alice and Tarrant were able to hold off Stayne long enough. And what was he to do if they could not?

Another section of Gryphons broke off from the main group as they flew towards The Room of Doors. Nivens looked down at the list of locations he had tucked between himself and the Gryphon. Too terrified to actually let go of the Gryphon, he mentally checked off Quest from the list. They were almost done with the list; just a little longer.

**OoOoOoOo**

The Tweedles and Iracebeth were almost near their destination. A wide grin was floating above the door where swords could be heard clashing into one another.

"Chess!" the Tweedles cried in unison. Chess looked down at the group, slowly floating towards them as his entire body came into view.

"Have you found the Queen yet?" Chess inquired.

"We need keys," Tweedle Dee explained.

"Stayne 'as 'em," Tweedle Dum added. Chess hesitated for a moment, not entirely sure if it was such a good idea for him to intrude upon the battle. After all, Stayne was very skilled and once he obtained the keys, he'd stick out like a sore thumb.

"Wait here," Chess remarked before he disappeared.

Cautiously making his way towards the battle, Chess maneuvered around Tarrant and Alice who were clearly tired by this point in time. Stayne was nearing the mirror which was not a good sign. Chess examined Stayne and could see that there was a set of keys by his side. Quickly, he made a grab for the keys and floated away as fast as he could. He felt a slash of pain as he tried to make his escape but he continued to desperately get away.

Blood was trickling down as Chess floated more slowly towards the Tweedles.

"It's just a scratch," Chess remarked upon seeing the group's worried expressions. He dropped the keys into the Tweedle Dee's hands. "Now get going."

The Tweedles simply nodded before leaving with Iracebeth. By this time, Chess rested on the floor, licking his wound.

**OoOoOo**

Tarrant took a sluggish swing at Stayne. Not surprisingly, Stayne blocked his attack with ease. Panting, Alice desperately tried to use this opportunity to attack an opening. However, she did not better than Tarrant as Stayne blocked this as well. It was not hard to see that the two were quickly tiring. Stayne was also tiring however he had been trained to push passed such limits in combat. He just needed a little more time before he could reach the mirror.

Now that the vile cat had taken the keys to Mirana's location, there was absolutely no point in staying. He had no choice but to flee. But that was all right; he had formed another plan while fighting these two. If he couldn't conquer Alice in Underland then he would have to conquer her in her own world. And what would the citizens of Underland do without their precious Alice?

But then Stayne saw something completely unexpected. A White Rabbit popped out of the mirror on the far side of room. He immediately recognized the rabbit as one of Alice's friends. What was he doing there? And why did he go through the mirror?

The rabbit was twitching nervously and, upon seeing that Stayne was looking at him, ran back through the mirror. However, a few minutes later, the rabbit appeared again only to once again jump back through the mirror.

"Are they trying to close the mirrors?" Stayne immediately thought, horrified by the idea. No, why would they do such a ridiculous thing? If he was right then Alice had opened the mirrors to begin with. Therefore, Alice could not return to her world if they closed them. But still, it was the only explanation as to why the rabbit was testing the mirrors. They were probably destroying other mirrors as he thought this through!

Realizing his only escape may soon be gone, Stayne fought with more force. He swung his sword mercilessly at Alice. She blocked the attack but his swing had been so strong it knocked her to the ground. Stayne could not push Tarrant to the ground, who had attacked immediately after seeing Alice down, but he did manage to push Tarrant enough away from himself that he could make a run for the mirror. And this was exactly what Stayne did. His long legs carried him quickly towards the other side of the room while Tarrant pursued him. It was risky but it was a risk he was willing to take.

Just as Stayne felt Tarrant's presence directly behind him, Stayne jumped through the mirror. Within the blink of an eye, Stayne saw that he was near the Room of Doors. However, directly in front of him was Nivens along with a band of Mirana's soldiers. Spears and swords surrounded him. Before he could turn around towards the looking glass, Alice and Tarrant stepped through, swords pointed directly at him. Reluctantly, Stayne dropped his weapon.

**OoOoOoO**

Iracebeth and the Tweedles trudged through the dungeon towards where Iracebeth believed her sister was located. It took some time for her to find the proper direction since she hardly ever visited the dungeon. However, soon muffled sobs filled the group's ears. Following the cries for help, the three came to the only occupied cell.

The White Queen was seated on the floor. Her white hair was dirty along with her pale face. Spots of red covered her dress. She looked towards the three, no longer crying but the remnants of tears were still on her face. No one spoke for a while.

"We are here to rescue you," Iracebeth stated as she took the keys from Tweedle Dee.

"I don't deserve to be rescued," Mirana replied.

"Don't be ridiculous," her sister returned sharply as she unlocked the cell. Iracebeth then stood in front of her. "Now, let's get out of here. I'm tired of being in this place."

"I'm sorry," Mirana said, still not moving.

"Us leaving wasn't a suggestion. Now, let's go," Iracebeth replied, not knowing how else to reply to her sister's apology. Her sister never apologized to her, ever. And it was strange to hear it now.

Mirana slowly got up from the floor. Without saying anything, she wrapped her arms around her sister. Startled, Iracebeth stood there, not knowing what to do. Tentatively, she placed a hand on her sister's back as if trying to return the affection she had just received. The two continued to stay in their embrace as they silently forgave one another.


	13. The Lobster Quadrille

_Finally! Yes, finally I have finished my schoolwork, enough of it anyway to finish this story! I apologize that this story has had so many problems but I hope you will at least read the ending. If not, oh well since I would have had to finish this story anyway (I can't leave stories unfinished). So, I won't say anymore other than enjoy! Reviews are appreciated._

* * *

**The Lobster Quadrille **

Now that the chaos of Stayne had been taken care of, there was nothing left but to celebrate the wondrous victory. Queen Mirana immediately had her heart set on a grand ball at Marmoreal to which her sister would attend before deporting to the Outlands. It was to be celebrated in a manner that suited both Queens: one that would mix red and white.

Alice insisted on leaving before the set engagement however no one would hear of it, especially Tarrant. He insisted upon her staying and even went so far as to assist in the creation of her dress. Despite all this, Alice was still protesting.

"For you see Alice, you simply must attend such an extravagant event. To not do so would be a crime in and of itself!" Tarrant insisted would Alice would protest. It was upon these occasions that Alice would sigh and allow Tarrant to continue explaining Underland balls. It was not that Alice wished to avoid the ball, however: she knew the longer she remained in Underland, the more attached everyone would become to her being there.

And so, the evening of the ball finally arrived. Alice wore a magnificent blue dress (for Tarrant insisted blue was the best color for her) as she entered the large ballroom. Chess' floating head immediately caught Alice's attention as it glided above the crowd, surveying the area until it found a decent place to be. Directly below Chess was Nivens, who was wearing a tabard with the Red Queen's insignia on it. The Tweedles were near him, also wearing Iracebeth's insignia.

Alice's gaze shifted as she heard a loud crash. Thackery was jumping and jittering so much he had accidentally knocked some cups down. Not too far away from him was Mallymkun and Alice could not help but to notice she was wearing a dress (which, after a moment's thought, did not surprise Alice).

"There you are Alice," Tarrant called as he came from behind her. The two greeted one another with a friendly smile. Tarrant then looked over towards the front of the room. "Don't they look lovely?" he inquired as he motioned towards the two queens sitting in complete harmony next to one another. Alice nodded, feeling as though it was, indeed, lovely to see the two sides at peace.

While Tarrant and Alice walked amongst the citizens of Underland and greeted their friends, a certain Mock Turtle was having an unusual conversation with a Gryphon.

"I think it would be most appropriate if we start with the_ Futterwacken_," the Gryphon stated.

"No, no! This celebration is begging to start with the _Lobster Quadrille_," the Mock Turtle insisted, tears streaming down his eyes as he recalled the marvelous dance.

"But we haven't got enough lobsters," the Gryphon retorted, which was an essential component to the dance.

"Just have them use their dance partners," the Mock Turtle replied.

"But we haven't got a sea!" the Gryphon returned which was another essential component to the dance.

"The dancers will figure it out," the Mock Turtle insisted and before the Gryphon could continue his protests, the Mock Turtle was instructing the musicians to play the _Lobster Quadrille. _

Alice heard the music had started to play but chose to ignore it since she did not plan on dancing right away. However she soon felt Tarrant grabbing her hand as he urged her towards the dance floor.

"Alice you simply must dance the _Lobster Quadrille_," Tarrant said.

"The _Lobster Quadrille_?" Alice inquired and sure enough, a few lobsters were beginning to encompass the ballroom floor (for once Iracebeth had heard the _Lobster Quadrille _being played, she immediately ordered all lobsters to make themselves present). Before Tarrant could say anything further, the Mock Turtle was singing the lyrics.

"'_Will you walk a little faster?' said the whiting to the snail,_

"_There's a porpoise close behind us and he's treading on my tail.'"_

Alice tried her best to follow the dance moves which involved throwing the poor lobsters across the floor. It was a rather odd dance to say the least but she dare not say so aloud as others (Tarrant included) seemed to be having a marvelous time.

"_Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance?_

_Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?"_

Alice was soon seeing how easy it was to have fun during this dance especially when throwing the lobsters. Of course, the lobsters seemed to mind this considering they were not being thrown out to see; however they were soon enjoying the dance as well. In particular, Alice found Tarrant's eccentricity during this dance to be rather entertaining. He practically jumped up and down the entire time as he threw his lobster across the floor.

It was a shame the music was forced to change as too many lobsters were suffering from their floor injuries. Tarrant took Alice's hand and they began to dance to a more _ordinary _piece. Despite this being a dancing piece Alice couldn't possibly picture Tarrant dancing to, he was doing quite well. In fact, he was dancing marvelously. She supposed she should have guessed he was a very good dancer since he was able to do the _Futterwacken _and what not.

Still, Alice found it very difficult to completely enjoy herself. There was still one very pressing matter Alice had neglected: she had yet to instill upon Tarrant that she was leaving. It was true there was something in the back of his mind that must have told him Alice would leave eventually but the fact of the matter was it probably had not been fully processed in his mind. As though Alice leaving was just a saying they had invented; it was not yet a serious matter for Tarrant. Alice knew this and she just had to find a way to break this news to him. For, she couldn't bear to say goodbye at the last minute and leave Tarrant in utter bewilderment.

"Aren't you glad you decided to stay Alice?" Tarrant inquired excitedly as they danced across the room, breaking Alice out of her current thought process.

"Yes, I'm glad I stayed," Alice admitted. "But you know I'll have to be going soon."

"But the party has just begun! You can't leave now!" Tarrant insisted. "Besides, what else would you be doing? Everyone's here."

"I meant I'll have to leave Underland soon," Alice explained. And here, Tarrant was silent for a moment and Alice was afraid she had upset him.

"Do you have to leave?" Tarrant finally inquired.

"Why yes, of course I have to leave," Alice replied. "I have a family that would miss me and I have to take care of Father's Company."

"Well, when you're done with that, you can come here," Tarrant said as though it were the simplest solution in the world. At first, Alice was offended as he brushed her father aside but then she remembered that he was mad and this way of thinking couldn't be helped.

"Tarrant, these things take time I'm afraid…." Alice replied.

"How much time?"

"I don't know…but it's going to take a while. Years," Alice said cautiously.

"Well…we'll worry about that later. Let's just enjoy this dance," Tarrant said and it was quite clear from his tone of voice he did not wish to speak of the subject anymore. However, Alice very well knew that Tarrant was avoiding the subject because he quite possibly wouldn't take 'no' for an answer.

"Tarrant, I have to leave," Alice said definitively.

"…You can't leave Alice," Tarrant replied quietly.

"Why?"

"Because I love you."

And at this point, both had stopped dancing and were standing in the middle of the dance floor as others surrounded them, still twirling away. Alice had taken a few steps back and was now staring at Tarrant, unsure of what to do or say. Tarrant stared at her as well. That was all they did: they stared at one another, neither knowing how to react or what to even feel as Tarrant's words were being processed. All of time seemed to stop and last for an eternity in that one instance until finally it decided to start again and dancers were bumping into them. So, without saying a word to one another, Alice and Tarrant left the dance floor.

Alice avoided Tarrant the rest of the evening. She simply did not know what to do anymore. Tarrant loved her. But, did she love him? She thought about this for a good deal. It was true, she loved him but did she love him in the sense he had meant? And, if so, was this affection strong enough to cause her to stay in Underland and abandon everything in her own world? This, she wasn't exactly sure about.

Before Alice realized it, the ball was coming to a close and she had no idea where Tarrant was. It was as if she were in some sort of a daze, a daze she couldn't get out of. In her daze, she managed to spot Tarrant walking out towards the balcony. Even though she had wanted to avoid him, she knew she couldn't and proceeded to follow him out on the balcony.

"Hi…" she said rather awkwardly as she approached Tarrant. There was another moment of silence as the two stared at one another. "Tarrant…I…I don't want to leave, you know. But I have to." Tarrant did not respond to this and Alice had a feeling this wasn't helping very much. She sighed as she leaned over the balcony. "I care about you Tarrant," Alice managed to say.

"So then the question is, what do we do now?" Tarrant inquired.

**OoOoOoOoO**

Alice stepped into her private room. She had had a rather long day dealing with the necessary affairs of her father's company as some businessmen were attempting to convince her to sell Opium to the citizens in China. Of course, Alice was completely against this idea despite the large sums other companies were making. But she knew there was another way to bring the company profits.

"I guess it's about time for tea," Alice thought. Even though she was exhausted, she could always use a cup of tea. She took a moment to look at the mirror in her room. It was a rather large mirror, just the way she liked it. Without hesitation, she stepped towards the looking glass and pressed her hand on it. Her hand was able to go right through the mirror and, before she knew it, she had placed her entire body through the portal.

"There you are, Alice!" Tarrant exclaimed, clearly very happy to see her. "I thought you might not come today." Alice merely smiled at him and sat beside at the tables that were placed together to create on overly large one.

"Of course I'd come today," Alice remarked. "I didn't come yesterday so it's only fair that I come today."

"Quite right," Tarrant remarked.

And the two sat down together and enjoyed their tea.

* * *

_I really debated on how to end this piece. I did want to put a kiss in there but when I was writing it it just didn't ...feel right. I think that's partially because I have been putting this story on hold a good deal and for that, I apologize. That's all I really have to say...now time to write something else :D. _

~LS_  
_


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